"The rise of populism poses a profound threat to human rights," Mr Roth said. They all claim that the public accepts violations of human rights as supposedly necessary to secure jobs, avoid cultural change, or prevent terrorist attacks." Phelim Kine, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said President Duterte has steamrolled human rights protections and elevated unlawful killings of criminal suspects to a cornerstone of government policy in the name of wiping out drug crime. "If the appeal of the strongman and the voices of intolerance prevail, the world risks entering a dark era," Mr Roth said. Like Mr Trump, Ms Hanson found it much easier to blame problems on minorities rather than address the bigger issues at hand, she said.

Source: New Zealand Herald January 12, 2017 21:22 UTC