Social Justice in an Open World: The Role of the United Nations
or justification for the aggravation of inequalities within societies, in particular inequalities relating to income and wealth? Is there a link between the prevalence of extreme poverty and levels of inequality? How does the existing dichotomy between an economic sphere (currently the domain of those promoting the laissez-faire approach) and a social sphere (presently the domain of the State and the civil society) affect matters of distribution and redistribution? What are the elements of a universally shared conception of equity? What can be said of the relative intellectual and political strength of the Governments, organizations and movements advocating an overall reduction in inequality? Do the principles and prescriptions relating to equity, equality and poverty contained in a text such as the Copenhagen Declaration represent shared values and ideals? If so, how can the virtual disappearance of this text, at least in official political circles, be explained? Whatare the analytical and political links between inequalities within countries and inequalities between countries? Is greater openness and increased integration in the world economy generating higher levels of inequality within countries? Are there traditional or emerging forms of inequality that are important for the people concerned but that have not been adequately recognized or addressed? Is this neglect related to deficiencies in the concepts, methods or approaches currently in use? In particular, how might the focus on results, on measurements of conditions at discrete points in time, be complemented by greater attention to the evolving social processes, social arrangements and institutions that define and guide the course of people's lives and their perceptions of equity and inequity? Within this context, should more attention be given to equity between successive generations?
Theme 2: National policies for sustainable growth and for preventing and reducing inequalities Resolutions, declarations and programmes of action adopted by the United Nations generally incorporate a clause emphasizing that countries are responsible (or at least "mainly" or "primarily" responsible) for their own development, in particular their social development. This affirmation is consistent with the fact that the living conditions of people are still largely determined by local and national policies and circumstances, and it serves to reassure the less powerful States that their national sovereignty and independence is still recognized, while also constituting a reminder to these States that they cannot rely entirely on international and bilateral assistance. Exemplifying the dichotomy between the social and economic spheres, this clause of national responsibility typically refers to social development and is very rarely associated with economic development. This notion of the responsibility of Governments for the formulation, adoption and implementation of appropriate