WASHINGTON: Human Rights Watch warned on Wednesday that US President Donald Trump was pushing the United States toward authoritarianism, as global democracy sinks to its lowest level in four decades.
In its annual report, the New York-based advocacy group said Trump’s return to the White House had accelerated a “downward spiral” for human rights that was already under strain from authoritarian powers such as Russia and China.
“The rules-based international order is being crushed,” the group said, accusing the Trump administration of showing “blatant disregard for human rights and egregious violations” at home.
Human Rights Watch pointed to what it described as unprecedented actions by US authorities, including the deployment of masked and heavily armed Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents who have carried out “hundreds of unnecessarily violent and abusive raids.”
The report said the administration’s racial and ethnic scapegoating, use of National Guard forces in what it called pretextual power grabs, and retaliation against perceived political opponents marked a decisive shift toward authoritarian rule. It also accused the White House of attempting to expand executive power while weakening democratic checks and balances.
Human Rights Watch further repeated its finding that the United States had engaged in enforced disappearances — a crime under international law — by transferring 252 Venezuelan migrants to a maximum-security prison in El Salvador.
The group said these policies were contributing to a broader global decline in democratic norms. It warned that the United States risked losing moral authority as a defender of human rights.
