Human Rights Watch says in its annual report that repression continues in North Korea, China and Burma.
It says North Korea continues to have dismal human rights conditions and one of the most repressive governments in the world. It says arbitrary arrests and torture are common.
The report says China aggressively censors the Internet and represses minorities and demonstrators. It also says China has no independent judiciary, and remains a one-party state that does not hold national elections.
Meanwhile, Human Rights Watch describes Burma as a strict police state where basic rights and freedoms are drastically restricted. It says the forced relocation of entire ethnic villages continues, and it accuses government armed forces of summary executions, torture and rape.
The group says Cambodia had a "sharp reversal" in human rights progress in 2005, while Malaysia made "marginal progress."
It says Indonesia had "disturbing signs" of a return to intimidating the press and criminalizing dissent.
Information for this report is provided by AP and AFP.
