US Added to Global Watchlist for Human Rights Due to Civil Liberty Concerns
The United States was added to the CIVICUS Monitor Watchlist on Sunday. This list, maintained by a research tool, tracks the status of freedoms and threats to civil liberties around the world.
CIVICUS, a global network of civil society organizations like Amnesty International, stated in a press release that the decision was made in light of President Donald Trump’s “assault on democratic norms and global cooperation.” The organization also pointed to the Administration’s reduction of funding and its crackdown on , which Trump labeled “”, enacted through executive action.
Mandeep Tiwana, Interim Co-Secretary General of CIVICUS, said in a press release that “The Trump Administration appears determined to dismantle the system of checks and balances that are the foundation of a democratic society.” He added that “Restrictive Executive Orders, unwarranted institutional cutbacks, and intimidation tactics through threatening statements by senior Administration officials are fostering an environment that stifles democratic dissent, a valued American principle.”
Other nations on the watchlist include the Democratic Republic of Congo, Italy, Pakistan, and Serbia.
CIVICUS uses a scale to classify civic space: open, narrowed, obstructed, repressed, and closed. “Open” is the highest rating, indicating full freedom of expression, while “closed” is the lowest. According to CIVICUS, a “decline in open civic space” involves “repressive legislation that restricts free speech and dialogue, obstacles to civil society activities and operations, and crackdowns on civil disobedience and peaceful demonstrations.”
The U.S. is currently classified as “narrowed,” indicating that while most people can exercise their rights to expression, free speech, and assembly, the government has made some attempts to infringe upon these rights. For instance, CIVICUS cited during the Biden Administration, following advocates taking to the streets and staging to protest U.S. military assistance and funding to Israel. Students protested, demanding their schools divest from entities profiting from or connected to Israel.
“We urge the United States to uphold the rule of law and respect constitutional and international human rights norms,” said Tiwana. “Americans across the political spectrum are appalled by the undemocratic actions of the current Administration.”
The White House has not yet responded to TIME’s request for comment.
The “narrowed” category also reflects CIVICUS’s assessment that while a free press exists, restrictions may arise from regulation or political pressure on media owners.
This comes as editorial decisions by major media organizations and governing bodies have sparked considerable debate.
In February, the Federal Communications Commission initiated an investigation into NPR and PBS over concerns that they were “violating federal law by airing commercials,” which both . The FCC chair also against public funding for the two news sites.
Jeff Bezos, Amazon CEO and owner of the Washington Post, instructed the organization to refocus its opinion pages in February, stating that they would write “in support and defense of two pillars: personal liberties and free markets.”
“We’ll cover other topics too of course, but viewpoints opposing those pillars will be left to be published by others,” Bezos told the Post team.
That same month, the White House announced that its press team would select the reporters for the press pool—a move the is about “restoring power back to the American people, who President Trump was elected to serve.” However, many journalism advocates criticized the act. “This move tears at the independence of a free press in the United States. It suggests the government will choose the journalists who cover the president. In a free country, leaders must not be able to choose their own press corps,” the White House Correspondents’ Association said in a .
The White House is also involved in a lawsuit filed by the Associated Press. The news organization has —including Leavitt—after it was denied access to White House press briefings for refusing to alter its editorial style and refer to the Gulf of Mexico as the “Gulf of America,” following Trump’s renaming in an he signed in January.
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