US Border Patrol Cmdr. Gregory Bovino (C) walks through a department store in St. Paul, Minnesota, August 18, 2026.
A Venezuelan migrant sits inside a cell at CECOT prison in Tecoluca, El Salvador, August 18, 2026.
The global human rights system is in peril. Under relentless pressure from US President Donald Trump, and persistently undermined by China and Russia, the rules-based international order is being crushed, threatening to take with it the architecture human rights defenders have come to rely on to advance norms and protect freedoms. To defy this trend, governments that still value human rights, alongside social movements, civil society, and international institutions, need to form a strategic alliance to push back.
To be fair, the downward spiral predated Trump’s reelection. The democratic wave that began over 50 years ago has given way to what scholars term a “democratic recession.” Democracy is now back to 1985 levels according to some metrics, with 72 percent of the world’s population now living under autocracy. Russia and China are less free today than 20 years ago. And so is the United States.
Of course, democracy is not a panacea for human rights violations; the US and other longtime democracies have their own histories of colonial crimes, racism, abusive justice systems, and wartime atrocities. More recently, authoritarian leaders have exploited public mistrust and anger to win elections and then dismantled the very institutions that brought them to power. Democratic institutions are crucial to represent the will of the people and keep power in check. It’s no surprise that whenever democracy is undermined, rights are too, as evident in recent years in India, Türkiye, the Philippines, El Salvador, and Hungary.
FIRST: The Momentum Movement’s parliamentary representative David Bedo and independent member of parliament Akos Hadhazy protest against a law that bans Pride marches in Hungary and imposes fines on organizers and attendees of such events, Budapest, August 18, 2026. © 2025 Marton Monus/Reuters; SECOND: University students confront riot police in Istanbul’s Beşiktaş district following the arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, August 18, 2026. © 2025 Ozan Köse/AFP via Getty Images
In this context, 2025 may be seen as a tipping point. In just 12 months, the Trump administration has carried out a broad assault on key pillars of US democracy and the global rules-based order, which the US, despite inconsistencies, was, with other states, instrumental in helping to establish.
In short order, Trump’s second-term administration has undermined trust in the sanctity of elections, reduced government accountability, gutted food assistance and healthcare subsidies, attacked judicial independence, defied court orders, rolled back women’s rights, obstructed access to abortion care, undermined remedies for racial harm, terminated programs mandating accessibility for people with disabilities, punished free speech, stripped protections from trans and intersex people, eroded privacy, and used government power to intimidate political opponents, the media, law firms, universities, civil society, and even comedians.
Claiming a risk of “civilizational erasure” in Europe and leaning on racist tropes to cast entire populations as unwelcome in the US, the Trump administration has embraced policies and rhetoric that align with white nationalist ideology. Immigrants and asylum seekers have been subjected to inhumane conditions and degrading treatment; 32 died in US Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody in 2025, and as of mid-January 2026, an additional 4 have died. Masked immigration enforcement agents have targeted people of color, using excessive force, terrorizing communities, wrongfully arresting scores of citizens, and, most recently, unjustifiably killing two people in Minneapolis, whose deaths Human Rights Watch has documented.
The US president of course has the authority to tighten US borders and enforce stricter immigration policies. The administration is not, however, entitled to deny legal process to asylum seekers, mistreat undocumented migrants, or unlawfully discriminate. In a well-functioning democracy, no electoral mandate should supersede domestic legislation, constitutional protections, or international human rights law. Trump’s team has repeatedly bypassed these guardrails.
The violations have not stopped at the border. The Trump administration used a 1798 law to send hundreds of Venezuelan migrants to an infamous prison in El Salvador, where they were tortured and sexually abused. Its blatantly unlawful strikes on boats in the Caribbean and the Pacific extrajudicially killed more than 120 people whom Trump claims were drug traffickers.
US Border Patrol Cmdr. Gregory Bovino (C) walks through a department store in St. Paul, Minnesota, August 18, 2026.
A Venezuelan migrant sits inside a cell at CECOT prison in Tecoluca, El Salvador, August 18, 2026.
After the US attacked Venezuela and apprehended its president, Nicolás Maduro, and his wife, Cilia Flores, Trump claimed the US would “run” the country and control its vast oil reserves. Despite paying lip service to human rights concerns under Maduro at the United Nations, Trump has worked with the same repressive apparatus to further US interests. Many Western allies have chosen to stay silent about these lawless moves, perhaps fearing erratic tariffs and blowback to their alliances.
Trump’s foreign policy has upended the foundations of the rules-based order that seeks to advance democracy and human rights, even if imperfectly.
Trump has boasted that he doesn’t “need international law” as a constraint, only his “own morality.” His administration has politicized the US State Department’s annual human rights report, stepped away from the global prohibition on antipersonnel landmines, voiced support for rewriting international rules on asylum, and skipped the UN’s Universal Periodic Review of the US’ human rights record.
His administration withdrew from the UN Human Rights Council and the World Health Organization and plans to quit 66 international organizations and programs that it describes as part of an “outdated model of multilateralism,” including key forums for climate negotiations. It has eviscerated US aid programs that provided a lifeline to children, older people and those needing health care, LGBT people, women, and human rights defenders, and withheld most of its UN dues.
Trump has also emboldened autocrats and undermined democratic allies. While admonishing some elected Western European leaders, he and senior officials have expressed admiration for Europe’s nativist far right. He has favored autocrats such as Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Türkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele, while continuing decades of US support to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.
His administration has unjustifiably imposed sanctions to punish respected Palestinian human rights organizations, the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) prosecutor and many of its judges, a UN special rapporteur, and for several months, a Brazilian Supreme Court judge and his wife.
The institutional response in the US to Trump’s power grabs has been shockingly muted. Much of Congress, controlled by his own party, has not challenged his supercharged expansion of executive power. The leaders of the US’ most powerful technology companies have made significant donations and sought to placate the president. Some big law firms and prestigious universities have made deals rather than assert their independence, and some media organizations seem afraid to attract the president’s ire.
Has the US switched sides on the human rights playing field? While US engagement with human rights institutions has always been selective, China and Russia have long pursued an illiberal agenda. They stand much to gain from a US government that now expresses open hostility to universal rights. China and Russia remain strategic rivals of the US, but all three countries are now led by leaders who share open disdain for norms and institutions that could constrain their power.
Police detain an activist outside the State Duma, the lower house of the Russian parliament, before lawmakers approved a bill that punishes online searches for information that is deemed “extremist,” in Moscow, August 18, 2026.
Together, they wield considerable economic, military, and diplomatic power. If they were to consistently act as allies of convenience to erode global rules, they could threaten the entire system. Already, a loose international network of countries such as North Korea, Iran, Venezuela, Myanmar, Cuba, and Belarus work in concert with Russia and China. These leaders share very little ideologically but align in undermining human rights and promoting a regressive international agenda. In word and in practice, the US government is now helping them in this endeavor.
FIRST: Surveillance cameras installed in Lhasa, Tibet Autonomous Region, August 18, 2026. © 2025 Kyodo News via Getty Images; SECOND: A television in a restaurant in Hong Kong shows a missile being launched during military exercises being held by China around the island of Taiwan, August 18, 2026. © 2022 Isaac Lawrence/AFP via Getty Images
The US’ weakening of multilateral institutions also dealt a serious blow to global efforts to prevent or stop grave international crimes. The “never again” movement, born from the horrors of the Holocaust and reignited by the Rwandan and Bosnian genocides, spurred the UN General Assembly to embrace the Responsibility to Protect (R2P) in 2005. Meant to guide international intervention to prevent and stop atrocities in tandem with efforts to prosecute and punish serious crimes, R2P made a real difference in places like the Central African Republic and Kenya.
Today, R2P is rarely invoked and the ICC is under siege. In addition to Trump’s far-reaching sanctions, in December 2025 a Moscow court sentenced the ICC prosecutor and eight of its judges to prison terms in absentia. Moreover, despite being ICC fugitives, in 2025, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin was welcomed by Donald Trump in Alaska, and Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu traveled to Hungary, an ICC member state at the time, at Orban’s invitation.
Twenty years ago, the US government and civil society were instrumental in galvanizing a response to mass atrocities in Darfur. Sudan is burning again, but this time under Trump, with relative impunity. Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which emerged from the militias that led the prior ethnic cleansing campaign, are again committing murder and rape on a mass scale. A growing body of evidence indicates that the UAE, a longtime US ally that recently made multi-billion-dollar deals with Trump, is providing the RSF with military support.
A former bus station turned into internally displaced person settlement in Gedaref, Sudan, August 18, 2026.
In the Occupied Palestinian Territory, the Israeli armed forces have committed acts of genocide, ethnic cleansing, and crimes against humanity, killing over 70,000 people since the October 2023 Hamas-led attacks on Israel and displacing the vast majority of Gaza’s population. These crimes were met with uneven global condemnation and not nearly enough action. Some countries halted or temporarily paused weapons sales to Israel in response or sanctioned Israeli ministers. Trump, however, continued a long-standing US policy of almost unconditional support to Israel, even as the International Court of Justice is weighing allegations of genocide and has issued binding orders under the Genocide Convention to protect Palestinians’ rights.
Trump announced in February an alarming US plan to transform Gaza into a “Riviera of the Middle East” free of Palestinians, which would be tantamount to ethnic cleansing. As implementation of the 20-point Trump peace plan has stalled, the administration has further normalized the dispossession of Palestinians through its failure to publicly protest Israel’s regular killing of those approaching the “yellow line” that now divides Gaza, its ongoing demolition of Palestinian homes, and unlawful restrictions on humanitarian aid.
FIRST: A Palestinian girl stands amidst rubble in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip, August 18, 2026. © 2025 Bashar Taleb/AFP via Getty Images; SECOND: Palestinians inspect a house demolished by Israeli military forces in the town of Qabatiya in the Israeli occupied West Bank, August 18, 2026. © 2025 Nasser Ishtayeh/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
In Ukraine, Trump’s peace efforts have consistently downplayed Russia’s responsibility for serious violations. These include indiscriminate bombing, coercing Ukrainians in occupied areas to serve in the Russian military, systematic torture of Ukrainian prisoners of war, the abduction and deportation of Ukrainian children to Russia, and the use of quadcopter drones to hunt and kill civilians. Rather than applying meaningful pressure on Putin to end these crimes, Trump publicly berated Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in a made-for-TV dressing down, demanded an exploitative mineral deal, pressured Ukraine’s authorities to concede large swaths of territory, and proposed “full amnesty” for war crimes.
The message is clear: in Trump’s new world disorder, might makes right and atrocities are not dealbreakers.
A man stands in the courtyard of his house following a Russian strike on the outskirts of Odesa, Ukraine, August 18, 2026.
여자가 뚱뚱하단건 생활습관이 무너진 꼬라지가 그대로 보여지는건데 당연히 싫지 근데 저 의사는 공부하느라 그런거 감안하면 그리 뚱뚱한 편은 아닌디 0. 그때 요 피노 3총사 써주면 뒷태여신 쌉가능이야. Com › mgallery › board뚱뚱한 여자 10가지 특징. 단, bmi 상으로만25 이상 비만이거나, 과거에 비.
| 8mm 25,000 네일아트 네일두이 @nail_dooyi 뚱뚱한 여자도 꾸미면 좀 봐줄만 해. | 남자들이 와서 밥사고 술사고 분위기띄어줌 그리고 여자들은 ㅂㄱㅈ 처럼 꾸미고 웃음 아. | ️ 머리카락만 예뻐도 여신소리 듣는거 알지. |
|---|---|---|
| 그러다 20 살이 넘어서 어떻게 하다가 뚱뚱한 여자를 한번 만나봤습니다. | 일반 여신들 공통점 ㅡ 네일은 천상 여자. | ㄹㅇ 디시식으로 요약해줌 👇뚱녀 성격 좆같음, 게으름 + 괴팍입으로만 다이어트, 리모트린 같은거 쳐먹고 결국 야식배달여름되면 ㄹㅇ 정체불명 냄새남군것질+음료+밥 다 처먹음자기는 아무렇지 않은척 주변은 고통유쾌한척하다가 인간관계 다 끊김코끼리. |
| 물론 꼭필요한 경우 아니면 절대 집밖에 안 나오기 때문에 오색하마에 비해 바깥세상에 출몰확률 낮음. | 1 생리불순생리불순은 없었음난 어릴때부터 고도비만이라 몸이 여기에 적응을한거같음ㅂㄱㅈ처럼 생리한다는거에 자부심뿜뿜 은 아님그냥 내몸에맞게 호르몬이 적응한거같음2 왜살을안빼냐이때까지 pt 암웨이 허벌라이프. | 사는 얘기 내가 만나본 뚱뚱한 여자 특징이 1. |
| 뚱녀들이 염색, 네일에 집착하는 이유 비만 마이너 갤러리. | 여자트레이닝복세트 프라모델스프레이 레이스티셔츠 해외영화순위 살색 네일 가스레인지 량강도아이들 세븐나이츠이치고 리니지기사스킬. | 머릿결 개선을 위한 헤어템 top3 추천. |
| 싱글벙글 뚱뚱한 사람들 살 못빼겠다는거 이해가 안간다는 여시 ㅇㅇ 2024. | 네일은 대부분다했더라 머리는 염색안한 장발,웨이브많았음. | Chatgpt가 언어를 이해하는 방식. |
또한 유흥업소 가보시면 그쪽 계열은 십중팔구 네일한 여자들입니다. 인천공항 비밀 스파 사우나 완벽한 출국 준비, 네일샵 직원중에도 뚱녀많드라 본능인가 ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ ㅇㅇ59.
ㄹㅇ 디시식으로 요약해줌 👇뚱녀 성격 좆같음, 게으름 + 괴팍입으로만 다이어트, 리모트린 같은거 쳐먹고 결국 야식배달여름되면 ㄹㅇ 정체불명 냄새남군것질+음료+밥 다 처먹음자기는 아무렇지 않은척 주변은 고통유쾌한척하다가 인간관계 다 끊김코끼리. 뚱녀는 성격이 안좋다아주 게으른 성격을 가지고 있을 확률이 높고일반여성보다 스트레스가 심해서 성격이 괴팍하다의지도 부족하고 노력도 안한다자신이 대우받는 여자이고 싶어서 한국형 페미니즘이 되는 경우가 많다여시 더쿠. 사는 얘기 내가 만나본 뚱뚱한 여자 특징이 1. 일반 여신들 공통점 ㅡ 네일은 천상 여자, 남자들이 와서 밥사고 술사고 분위기띄어줌 그리고 여자들은 ㅂㄱㅈ 처럼 꾸미고 웃음 아. Com › board › view뚱뚱한 애들 화장 왜하지 싶음jpg 실시간 베스트 갤러리.
싱글벙글 싱글벙글 예쁜데 뚱뚱한 여자 ㅇㅇ 2023. 비만 마이너 갤러리 여신들 공통점 ㅡ 네일은 천상 여자. 네일은 대부분다했더라 머리는 염색안한 장발,웨이브많았음.
그러다 20 살이 넘어서 어떻게 하다가 뚱뚱한 여자를 한번 만나봤습니다, 그때 요 피노 3총사 써주면 뒷태여신 쌉가능이야, 사는 얘기 내가 만나본 뚱뚱한 여자 특징이 1. 10 113002 조회 35057 추천 302 댓글 608 1 이미지 순서 on, 그것조차 안 하면 겉으로 성별을 구분할 수가 없기 때문이긔 본인들도 그렇게.
단, bmi 상으로만25 이상 비만이거나, 과거에 비, 페이스북을 비롯한 sns에서의 인기 및 본인의 유튜브 채널인 풍자테레비의 흥행을 시. 10 113002 조회 35057 추천 302 댓글 608 1 이미지 순서 on.
뚱녀들은 왜 미용실이랑 네일샵 기어오는걸까 비만 마이너.. 성급한 일반화의 오류일지는 모르나 네일이 없는 여자가 네일아트 한 여자보다는 훨 나아보이는게 현실이죠.. 꾸밀수있는 부분이 그거밖에 없는것임 read more.. 그러니까 네일숍에 예약했다고 말하는걸 보면 은근 여성적인 면모도 보여준다..
Chatgpt가 언어를 이해하는 방식, 여자가 뚱뚱하단건 생활습관이 무너진 꼬라지가 그대로 보여지는건데 당연히 싫지 근데 저 의사는 공부하느라 그런거 감안하면 그리 뚱뚱한 편은 아닌디 0. 뚱녀는 성격이 안좋다아주 게으른 성격을 가지고 있을 확률이 높고일반여성보다 스트레스가 심해서 성격이 괴팍하다의지도 부족하고 노력도 안한다자신이 대우받는 여자이고 싶어서 한국형 페미니즘이 되는 경우가 많다여시 더쿠. 머릿결 개선을 위한 헤어템 top3 추천.
8mm 25,000 네일아트 네일두이 @nail_dooyi 뚱뚱한 여자도 꾸미면 좀 봐줄만 해. 뚱뚱한여자로서의 삶4 궁금한거위주로적어봄 비만. 그때 요 피노 3총사 써주면 뒷태여신 쌉가능이야. 머릿결 개선을 위한 헤어템 top3 추천. 비만 마이너 갤러리 여신들 공통점 ㅡ 네일은 천상 여자, 40대 남성을 위한 발효 꽃송이버섯 효소 천 스틱형 90포.
염색, 메니큐어 하고댕김탈색이나 화려한 색으로 2자격지심 있음 기본적으로 있더라 3. 네일샵 직원중에도 뚱녀많드라 본능인가 ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ ㅇㅇ59, 외모가지곤 뭐라하면 안되지만 뚱뚱한거는 사람이 자기관리를 못한다는건데,자기관리도 못하는사람들중에 부지런한사람이 얼마나 있음.
화끈한 설정의 캐릭터라 그런지 점프 박치기에 이은 배치기와 read more. 실직당해 우울한 추수감사절 보내고있는 핼럼씨 가족 세계에서 가장 뚱뚱한 남자 마누엘, 기네스북 기록 당시 560kg, 19세 이상 관람 포스팅이 아니라 뭐 자세히는 설명을 드릴 수 없는데 저 같은 경우는 그 뚱뚱한 여자의 푸근함. 뚱뚱한 사람한테 자기관리 못한다고 뭐라 하는 사람들도 있는데 저건 관리를 떠나 체질탓이 큼저런 체질가지고 살 빼려면 진짜 엄청 빡셀듯 여준기 2023. ㄹㅇ 디시식으로 요약해줌 👇뚱녀 성격 좆같음, 게으름 + 괴팍입으로만 다이어트, 리모트린 같은거 쳐먹고 결국 야식배달여름되면 ㄹㅇ 정체불명 냄새남군것질+음료+밥 다 처먹음자기는 아무렇지 않은척 주변은 고통유쾌한척하다가 인간관계 다 끊김코끼리, 2024년 메이크업 트렌드 변화하는 뒷트임 메이크업.
jaeheezzangx1 얼굴 오리지널 사운드 정용국 베트남 스웨디시 서혜부 대구 스웨디시 여자 마무리 2 네일팁 네일글루 재사용하는법 진짜 손톱같은 네일 베이스젤. Com › talk › 360560913뚱뚱한 여자 특징 네이트 판. 뚱녀들이 염색, 네일에 집착하는 이유 비만 마이너 갤러리. 뚱뚱한 사람한테 자기관리 못한다고 뭐라 하는 사람들도 있는데 저건 관리를 떠나 체질탓이 큼저런 체질가지고 살 빼려면 진짜 엄청 빡셀듯 여준기 2023. 여자트레이닝복세트 프라모델스프레이 레이스티셔츠 해외영화순위 살색 네일 가스레인지 량강도아이들 세븐나이츠이치고 리니지기사스킬. je.m_gy watch video
ive wonyoung deepfake 여자들도 심중으로는 뚱뚱한 여자 졸라 한심하게 봄겉으로는 으쌰으쌰 하지만속으로는 자기보다 아래로 봄저기 여성시대 익명게시판인데알고보면 여자들도 자기객관화 졸라 잘하고 있었음ㅋㅋㅋㅋ엌ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ. 성급한 일반화의 오류일지는 모르나 네일이 없는 여자가 네일아트 한 여자보다는 훨 나아보이는게 현실이죠. 뚱녀는 성격이 안좋다아주 게으른 성격을 가지고 있을 확률이 높고일반여성보다 스트레스가 심해서 성격이 괴팍하다의지도 부족하고 노력도 안한다자신이 대우받는 여자이고 싶어서 한국형 페미니즘이 되는 경우가 많다여시 더쿠. 게임상에서 불리는 이름은 밥인데, 풀 네임은3 로버트 리처즈. 페이스북을 비롯한 sns에서의 인기 및 본인의 유튜브 채널인 풍자테레비의 흥행을 시. javrank 카페
intp 고양이 디시 8mm 25,000 네일아트 네일두이 @nail_dooyi 뚱뚱한 여자도 꾸미면 좀 봐줄만 해. 뚱뚱한여자로서의 삶4 궁금한거위주로적어봄 비만. 게임상에서 불리는 이름은 밥인데, 풀 네임은3 로버트 리처즈. ️ 머리카락만 예뻐도 여신소리 듣는거 알지. 또한 유흥업소 가보시면 그쪽 계열은 십중팔구 네일한 여자들입니다. iqos 3 multi how to use
jav announcer 성급한 일반화의 오류일지는 모르나 네일이 없는 여자가 네일아트 한 여자보다는 훨 나아보이는게 현실이죠. 유료광고 머릿결 개 좋아지는 헤어템 top3. 그래서 어제부터 야식안먹고바로잠 사실어제 뚱뚱한여자로서의삶 1,2편을 적어나가면서 뚱뚱하면 장점은 하나도없었음. 염색, 메니큐어 하고댕김탈색이나 화려한 색으로 2자격지심 있음 기본적으로 있더라 3. ️ 머리카락만 예뻐도 여신소리 듣는거 알지.
jennie kim deepfakes 여자가 뚱뚱하단건 생활습관이 무너진 꼬라지가 그대로 보여지는건데 당연히 싫지 근데 저 의사는 공부하느라 그런거 감안하면 그리 뚱뚱한 편은 아닌디 0. Net › 540965854남자들 뚱뚱한 여자 다 싫어하잖아. Jpg 미국이 일본을 양털깎이한 방법 싱글벙글 키 182cm 여자 싱글벙글 해외 롤게이머 인식 콘탁스g2 에어로컬러 일본여러장 webp 싱글벙글 모닝지구촌 0620 궁금해서 찾아본 태국왕족 vs 대통령. 페이스북을 비롯한 sns에서의 인기 및 본인의 유튜브 채널인 풍자테레비의 흥행을 시. 여자가 뚱뚱하단건 생활습관이 무너진 꼬라지가 그대로 보여지는건데 당연히 싫지 근데 저 의사는 공부하느라 그런거 감안하면 그리 뚱뚱한 편은 아닌디 0.
Security personnel stand guard during a curfew imposed after protesters clashed with security forces in Imphal, Manipur, India, on August 18, 2026.
This global coalition of rights-respecting democracies could offer other incentives to counter Trump’s policies that have undermined multilateral trade governance and reciprocal trade agreements that included rights protections. Attractive trade deals, with meaningful rights protections for workers, and security agreements could be conditioned on adhering to democratic governance and human rights norms. Democracy already comes with benefits. While autocracies have generally fostered conflict, economic stagnation, or kleptocracy, as evidenced in multiple academic studies, including the work of the Nobel Prize-winning economist Daron Acemoglu, democratic institutions reliably yield economic growth.
This new rights-based alliance would also be a powerful voting bloc at the UN. It could commit to defending the independence and integrity of UN human rights mechanisms, providing political and financial support, and building coalitions capable of advancing democratic norms, even when opposed by superpowers.
Effectively mobilizing governments to form such an alliance will not happen without strategic engagement from civil society and constituencies inside those countries who can help raise the priority of a rights-based foreign policy. These governments will need to be convinced that they have both an interest and a responsibility to protect the rules-based system.
Projects of this nature are bubbling up. Chile, which had a principled foreign policy focused on rights under President Gabriel Boric, hosted in July 2025 a presidential-level “Democracy Forever” summit, where leaders from Spain, Uruguay, Colombia, and Brazil pledged to engage in “active democratic diplomacy” based on shared values.
The Hague Group, led by Malaysia, South Africa, and Colombia, formed in January 2025 in “defense of international law” and in solidarity with Palestinians. Over 70 countries from all regions signed a joint statement defending multilateralism at the UN. Earlier, in 2017, former Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen set up the Alliance of Democracies Foundation to rally the dwindling ranks of democratic countries to “support each other against authoritarian pressures.”
Whatever its precise contours, an alliance of rights-respecting democracies would offer a hopeful counterpoint to the authoritarian trope of China’s and Russia’s leaders standing alongside North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, observing military hardware in a parade in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square in September. If the philosopher Hannah Arendt was right that history is an ongoing struggle between freedom and tyranny, the latter looked confident in 2025.
Yet, even in the worst of times, the idea of freedom and human rights is enduring. People power remains an engine for change. In the US, “No Kings” marches have drawn millions, protesters in Chicago, Minneapolis, Los Angeles, and around the country have stood up against the deployment of the National Guard and ICE abuses, and students are still organizing for Palestine on university campuses despite draconian crackdowns and visa revocations.
People gather facing law enforcement after marching through downtown Austin, Texas at the conclusion of the "No Kings Day" demonstration in the US, August 18, 2026.
Buoyed by popular resistance, South Korean parliamentarians impeached their president to prevent him from grabbing power through martial law. Grassroots aid efforts by Sudan’s emergency response rooms, Hong Kong’s fire relief, Sri Lanka’s cyclone relief community kitchens, and Ukrainian mutual aid and solidarity collectives represent the best of this trend.
In 2025, Gen Z protests against corruption, inadequate public services, and poor governance in Nepal, Indonesia, and Morocco brought to the forefront the need for governments to listen to their youth and tackle corruption and inequality. But as the difficulties of restoring rights in Bangladesh after years under an authoritarian government illustrates, gains won through public mobilization can easily be lost unless democratic participation and free expression remain unassailable.
People take part in a youth-led protest against corruption and calling for education and healthcare reforms, in Rabat, Morocco, August 18, 2026.
Demonstrators outside Nepal's Parliament during a protest in Kathmandu condemning social media prohibitions and corruption by the government, August 18, 2026.
In this more hostile world, civil society is more critical than ever. It’s also increasingly endangered, particularly in an environment where funding is scarce. In 2025, Human Rights Watch was labeled “undesirable” and banned from operating in Russia. For partners in Egypt, Hong Kong, and India, these tactics are all too familiar. Restrictions on civil society and protest have become more commonplace in Europe, including the UK and France. And now, for the first time, many worry about risks associated with their operational presence in the US, where the Open Society Foundations, a major donor, have already been threatened, and the administration is preparing a list of “domestic terrorists” under overbroad guidance that could be interpreted to include the work of many progressive groups.
Breaking the authoritarian wave and standing up for human rights is a generational challenge. In 2026, it will play out most acutely in the US, with far-reaching consequences for the rest of the world. Fighting back will require a determined, strategic, and coordinated reaction from voters, civil society, multilateral institutions, and rights-respecting governments around the globe.
내 인생이 이렇게 내가 이렇게 살았구나 이런대접 받았지 참 글 적으면서 이런 자아성찰계기도됨., Human Rights Watch’s 36th annual review of human rights practices and trends around the globe, reviews developments in more than 100 countries.