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ABC News – The Economic Impact of Eroding Human Rights in Asia: Insights from a Human Rights Watch Report

Article Summary:

BANGKOK — A recent report by Human Rights Watch highlights severe backsliding in the protection of basic rights across Asia. This decline is impacting economies, exacerbating inequality, and making the poor more susceptible to labor abuses and scams.

The report indicates that many Asian governments have become increasingly hostile to human rights initiatives amidst a rise in authoritarianism worldwide. It calls on rights-respecting democracies to collaborate with civil society to counteract this dangerous trend.

The document also discusses the repercussions of the U.S. withdrawal from international aid and organizations during Donald Trump’s presidency. This shift has created a vacuum that needs urgent attention to support human rights in the region.

Overall, weakened protections are linked to heightened struggles for many communities, particularly in countries like Afghanistan, where forced returns of displaced individuals and drastic cuts in foreign aid are contributing to dire situations.

Original Article:

What a Human Rights Watch report says about the economic toll of backsliding rights in Asia

BANGKOK — Widespread backsliding on protections of basic rights is taking a toll on Asian economies as growing inequality leaves the poor vulnerable to labor abuses and scams, a report by Human Rights Watch says.

The report released Thursday says many governments in the region have grown more hostile to efforts to protect basic human rights as an authoritarian wave has swept across the world in the past year.

It urges “rights respecting democracies” to form alliances with civil society groups to counter that trend and help to fill a vacuum left by the U.S. withdrawal of foreign aid and participation in international organizations, such as the World Health Organization, under President Donald Trump.

Here is what to know.

Weakened basic human rights are intertwined with hardships for many in the region. In Afghanistan, forced returns of displaced people plus sharp cuts to foreign aid…

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