Human Rights Watch (HRW) published the 36th edition of its annual world report (February 2026), which analyses the human rights practices in more than 100 countries.
Human Level’s Take:
- The global human rights system and rules-based international order are under serious threat
- The world is in a “democratic recession”: democracy has fallen to 1985 levels, and 72% of the global population now lives under autocracy. 2025 marks a tipping point, with the Trump administration undermining key pillars of US democracy and the global rules-based order
- The second Trump administration has committed human rights violations domestically and internationally, often without accountability or strong condemnation from other states
- The US has withdrawn from major international bodies, including the UN Human Rights Council and the World Health Organization, and plans to exit 66 more institutions, including key climate forums. It has also dismantled US aid programmes supporting children, older people, healthcare access, LGBTQ+ people, women, and human rights defenders. As Philippe Bolopion, executive director of HRW notes, Trump’s foreign policy has upended the foundations of the rules-based order that seeks to advance democracy and human rights
- The report highlights an opportunity for a new global alliance to fill the vacuum left by the US and strengthen human rights within a rules-based framework. Such an alliance could offer trade and security agreements with strong labour and rights protections, conditional on democratic governance and human rights compliance
- Civil society is essential to driving change by engaging governments to advance human rights. However, it is increasingly under threat worldwide, including in Europe (e.g. the UK and France) and the United States
- Why is this important for companies? The report makes clear that there are no “safe” places for human rights, including in long-standing democracies. It is critical that wherever companies operate, source and sell their products and services, they conduct robust human rights due diligence to identify the ways in which the operating context can negatively impact people in their value chains, and continue to monitor evolving country contexts
Some key takeaways:
- The global human rights system in peril: According to the executive director of HRW, Philippe Bolopion, the global human rights system is in peril and the rules-based international order is being crushed under relentless pressure from the United States (US) president Donald Trump, and persistently undermined by countries like China and Russia. This is in the context of a “democratic recession,” with democracy now back to 1985 levels, and 72% of the world’s population living under autocracy. China, Russia and the United States are less free today than 20 years ago. 2025 can be seen as a tipping point, with the Trump administration undermining key pillars of US democracy and the global rules-based order. Examples of actions that Trump’s second-term administration has carried out include: undermining trust in the sanctity of elections; reducing government accountability; removing food assistance and healthcare subsidies; attacking judicial independence; defying court orders; rolling back women’s rights; obstructing access to abortion care; undermining remedies for racial harm; terminating programmes mandating accessibility for people with disabilities; punishing free speech; stripping protections from trans and intersex people; eroding privacy; and using government power to intimidate political opponents, the media, law firms, universities, civil society, and comedians. The Trump administration has also embraced policies and rhetoric that align with white nationalist ideology to cast entire populations as unwelcome in the US, which has led to fatalities. For instance, immigrants and asylum seekers have been subjected to inhumane conditions and degrading treatment, with 36 dying in US Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody between 2025 and mid-January 2026. Masked immigration enforcement agents have targeted people of colour, using excessive force, terrorising communities, wrongfully arresting citizens, and, most recently, unjustifiably killing two people in Minneapolis. Human rights abuses have not stopped at the US border, however. Abuses have been perpetrated by the Trump administration against Venezuelan migrants and in Sudan, for example. The administration has also withdrawn from key international institutions, agencies, and organisations like the UN Human Rights Council and the World Health Organization - and plans to quit from another 66 more, including key forums for climate negotiations. Furthermore, it has eviscerated US aid programmes that provided a lifeline to children, older people and those needing health care, LGBTQ+ people, women, and human rights defenders. As Philippe Bolopion highlights, Trump’s foreign policy has upended the foundations of the rules-based order that seeks to advance democracy and human rights.
- The urgent need for a new global alliance: The report emphasises the need to fill the vacuum left by the US by establishing a new global alliance to support international human rights within a rules-based order. Examples of participants in a cross-regional alliance include 1) established democracies with significant economic and geopolitical clout. These include, but are not limited to, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Japan, South Africa, South Korea, and the UK, as well as the EU as an institution and many of its member states; and 2) countries beyond the usual suspects that have played important roles in building the multilateral order and on specific human rights initiatives in key international forums. These include, but are not limited to, Costa Rica, Ghana, Malaysia, Mexico, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Vanuatu, Liechtenstein and The Gambia. The report argues that a global coalition of rights-respecting countries could counter Trump’s policies by offering incentives, including attractive trade and security agreements with robust rights protections for workers, conditional on adherence to democratic governance and human rights norms. This alliance could also be a powerful voting bloc at the United Nations (UN), committed 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.
- The importance of civil society: The report highlights the importance of civil society and people power as engines for change. Strategic engagement from civil society and constituencies inside countries can help mobilise governments to form the global alliance mentioned above. While having a vibrant civil society is more critical than ever, it is also increasingly endangered, particularly in an environment where funding is scarce or significantly scaled back. For instance, HRW was labelled as “undesirable” and banned from operating in Russia in 2025. Similar tactics have been used in Egypt, Hong Kong, and India. In addition, restrictions on civil society and protest have become more common in Europe, including the UK and France. Many civil society are now worried about risks associated with their operational presence in the US, where major donors have already been threatened. The Trump administration is currently preparing a list of “domestic terrorists” under over broad guidance that could be interpreted to include the work of many progressive groups.
