How Donald Trump’s example has emboldened Asia’s strongmen leaders – and delivered a setback to democracy
Although much of the region’s authoritarian swerve began before Trump took office, experts claim his administration has done little to prevent its acceleration
Liberal Cambodians have never had it easy, but this year has robbed many of hope.
Prime Minister Hun Sen, in power since the 1980s, has jailed an opposition leader, expelled NGO workers and closed an independent newspaper. “Descent Into Outright Dictatorship,” screamed a headline on its final front page.
For years, these Cambodians have looked to the US as an example of the virtues of democracy, and – as a major source of aid – a check on their own government’s authoritarian impulses. But they say US President Donald Trump’s tirades against the media and apparent fondness for strongmen have left them rudderless.
“Activists in autocratic regimes usually point to the US as a model,” said Virak Ou, a prominent Cambodian human rights activist. “But Trump has almost destroyed that, in a way.”
Activists in autocratic regimes usually point to the US as a model. But Trump has almost destroyed that, in a way
Trump set off on Friday for a 12-day, five-country visit to Asia, the longest of his presidency. After an initial stop on Friday in Hawaii, Trump will travel to Japan, Vietnam, the Philippines, South Korea and China – and while he will focus mainly on North Korea’s nuclear weapons programme and US trade imbalances, he will also find a region sliding ever further from liberal democracy, with repression, censorship and one-man rule on the rise.