VOA常速英语:人权观察表示：民粹主义的崛起威胁基本权利

The 687-page report, the 27th edition, reviewed human rights practices in more than 90 countries. This is a uniquely troubling time, says Human Rights Watch Executive Director Kenneth Roth,because the global rise of populist leaders poses an extraordinary threat to human rights.

“Nativism, xenophobia, racism, Islamophobia and misogyny are all on the rise. If the voices of intolerance prevail, the world risks entering a dark era.”

He says violent terror attacks have generated fear and suspicion,and also an increasing sense that governments and the elite ignore public concerns.This has created an environment of discontent in which certain politicians are flourishing.

“They’re bringing drugs, they’re bringing crime, they’re rapists.”

“Donald Trump’s successful presidential campaign vividly illustrated this politics of intolerance.He stereotyped migrants, vilified refugees, attacked a judge for his ancestry, dismissed multiple allegations of sexual abuse and pledged to roll back women’s ability to control their own fertility.”

But Trump says he won because Americans were dissatisfied with the Obama administration.

Roth believes that Trump’s tactics are catching on elsewhere.

“Leading the charge have been Marine Le Pen in France and Geert Wilders in the Netherlands.But there are echoes of this intolerance in the Brexit campaign,the rhetoric of Viktor Orban in Hungary and Jaroslaw Kaczynski in Poland.And far right parties from Germany to Greece.”

Larry Sabato from the University of Virginia Center for Politics via Skype,

“It ought to concern anyone who cares about small ’d’ democracy.Because often what happens in the United States or in other democracies like Great Britain ends up being replicated in other democracies such as France, Germany and beyond.”

Roth also criticizes what he referred to as the strongmen of Russia, Turkey, the Philippines, Egypt and China,whom he says are increasingly substituting their own authority for accountable government and the rule of law.

“President Erdogan’s increasingly dictatorial rule in Turkey.Egypt, under President Sissi produced a rule that is far more repressive than anything that happened even under President Mubarak.President Putin has restricted assembly and expression, penalized online decent and crippled civil society groups.China’s Xi Jinping has embarked on a similar path of repression.”

Roth also cautioned against leaders in Africa who have removed or extended term limits,and the recent withdrawal announcement from the international criminal court by a few of them.

In Washington, Mariama Diallo, VOA news.