Nearly all underdeveloped countries are ruled by the upper class elites, sometimes taking into considerations to the middle ‘educated’ classes and even rarer to the organised labour, which is a very privileged worker class. And in these countries, the ruling governments have announced that they are in favour of decreased inequality and the raising of the living levels of the poor.
However the trend is going in the complete reverse direction, with a heightened level of inequality, seeing the rewards of any development being enjoyed by the upper class members, while the lower classes experience worsening living and working conditions.
Redirecting the money towards those whom need it the most alone will not create a perfect equal society. Instead they require fundamental changes in both living and working conditions, with an emphasis on both increased equality and increased productivity. Corruption must be completely eliminated on all levels.
Here are some interesting figures that I found in my research, that weren’t in the article, but illustrate the
• The net worth of the richest 358 people in the world is equal to the combined annual income of the 2.3 billion poorest people in the world
• In Mexico the poorest 10% of the population receives 1.52% of the Gross National Income while the top 10% receives 38.7% of it
The problem with developed countries helping out in implementing these changes lies with the fact that any negotiations, including those involving aid, are conducted with the social elite, thus increasing the strength of groups who prevent the needed changes, preserving inequality.
Even with agreements in regards to arms accumulation, superpowers continue to militarise nations, both developed and underdeveloped, the cost of which has been calculated to exceed production in all the underdeveloped countries combined. This waste of resources must be drastically reduced.
Gunnar finishes by asking the question, are we becoming less morally sensitive due to increased effective communications, such as TV, which shows the horrors of war and poverty on a regular basis. Has it blunted our feelings for human compassion? For this would explain why we increasingly become immune to the reality of sufferings and deaths in the poorest countries.