16-17 September 2005

Agenda and Programme of Work

The Subject
1. The fundamental equality of all human beings, born free and equal in dignity and rights, is a basic tenet of the Charter of the United Nations and of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. One of the rights included in the Universal Declaration is the right for everyone to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself/herself and of his/her family. And the Charter is also based on the principle of the sovereign equality of all the Members of the United Nations.

2. Traditionally, this central concept of equality has been construed as implying the promotion of equality within and among countries. Within countries, this meant the pursuit of equality of rights – most prominently of civil and political rights – and of equality of opportunities – notably through access to education, work and employment – and the reduction of inequalities – particularly in the distribution of income and wealth. Among countries, besides respect for “one country one vote” in the General Assembly of the United Nations, one of the principal aims of international cooperation for development was the closing of the “gap” separating developed and developing countries in terms of economic development and income per capita. Although with many nuances, these objectives are still shared by the organizations of the United Nations system and by the Bretton Woods institutions.

3. Whereas there had been, albeit with exceptions and setbacks, a general lessening of the various forms of inequality in the decades following World War II, this trend appears to have been halted or even reversed since the mid 1980s. Available data and analyses show that many societies, affluent and poor, are experiencing an aggravation of inequality in the distribution of income, wealth, access to essential services and opportunities for work and employment. Real and most important progress in equality between men and women cannot obscure the facts that various types of discrimination are plaguing societies and that the distance between rich and poor is generally increasing. And so is the distance between rich and poor countries. As the de facto interdependence of regions and countries is becoming more pronounced, including through the globalization of the world economy, issues of inequality within countries and of inequality among countries are increasingly linked, and it does not seem inappropriate to evoke a global decline of the concept and practice of social justice.

Proposed Themes for Debate

Theme 1: What are the causes of the current aggravation of inequalities and of the apparent neglect of the idea of social justice?

Explanations can be found in the functioning of the world economy and in the characteristics of the process of economic and financial globalization, as well as in the related shift of power from labour to capital. Beyond such explanations, however, are there in the spirit of the time, in the dominant philosophical and political culture, features that contribute to the erosion of the concept, practice, and appeal of social justice? Has this notion been transformed since its formation by the European Enlightenment and the socialist movements issued from the Industrial Revolution? Is there a weakening of the belief in Homo aequalis and a resurgence of homo hierarchicus? Put differently, what is the prevalent perception of the notions of equity and equality in the circles of power and intellectual influence?

Theme 2: What would be the consequences of a continuation of the trend towards more inequality in the distribution of income and wealth among social groups and classes and among countries?

Would this inequality become morally acceptable and politically tolerable if the reduction of extreme poverty, as envisaged in the Millennium Declaration and the Millennium Development Goals, were to be achieved?

Or, would it create in any case dual societies and a dual world? How such societies would be maintained and which order would prevail in such a world? Which conception of social justice is implied in the goal of striving for a peaceful and prosperous world community?

Theme 3: What is the rationale for advocating the pursuit of social justice in today’s world?

Are pragmatic reasons, such as the prevention of revolts and conflicts, or the requirements of a broad-based economy, morally sufficient and politically convincing? Is justice, in all its forms, both an individual virtue and a critical ingredient of any society, from the local community to the world as a whole? Should the call for social justice be anchored in a conception of human nature – or natural law, in the demands of reason – as in the Kantian categorical imperative, in the requirements of a revealed religion, and/or, “simply”, in the exigencies of the sympathy and responsibility that every human being – and most particularly those in a position of power – should feel for the “other”? Apart from revisiting the moral foundations of social justice, should greater attention be given to the implications and limits of widely accepted values such as competition and economic openness? Could social justice be conceived as the other face of individual liberty and economic freedom?

Theme 4: What are the means for pursuing social justice in an interdependent world and globalized economy?

While it remains true that the governments of individual countries – including those of most of the developing countries – have the possibility to shape their social and economic structures and patterns of distribution of rights, opportunities, income and wealth, it is also increasingly true that transnational forces have an often decisive influence on national economies and national cultures and on the living conditions of people. Could a picture be drawn of the influence on social justice of these various international and transnational forces, arrangements and institutions that are now present on the world scene? Which international or global institutions could be re-oriented, or strengthened, or created, to give a new impulse to the promotion of social justice in the world?