A more optimistic picture was expected for the world economy when we entered the 21st century after the Cold War had ended. However, the first decade following the end of the Cold War was reflected in reports by international institutions about the deepening problem of global poverty, a grave level of income inequality, and a global terror problem rooted in the troubles mentioned earlier, which can also be referred to as the depression of globalization. During this period, Turkey has become an important shelter for refugees fleeing the world's poorest regions, those most affected by income equality, and those from Iraq and Syria's unstable environments and civil war. Turkey's inclusive struggle to support the development of African countries and Eurasian countries has put it high on the list of benefactor countries in terms of international aid.
If the leading countries of the world are sincere in fighting against global terror, they should be aware of the fact that one of the most essential branches of this fight goes through a more effective battle with global poverty and income inequality. Nevertheless, despite this fundamental truth, both global unemployment, reaching 210 million people, and global social inequality are rising rapidly. British NGO Oxfam's annual report published last week revealed that the wealth of the eight richest people on earth is equal to the wealth owned by half of the world, which substantiates this principle of inequality. The report points out that the eight wealthiest investors and businessmen in the world possess a total of $426 billion; and this number is equal to the wealth of the poorest 3.6 billion people, namely half of the world. Oxfam's management states that this unfair distribution of wealth is a state to be ashamed of. The politicians in the world's leading nations say that they are worried about the broadening gap between the rich and the poor.
Tax havens should be prevented
Oxfam has suggested to globally deduct taxes from conglomerates according to minimum tax ratios, to shut down tax havens, enforce transparency in profits and tax payments of international holding companies, and to deduct special taxes from those with avery high income and the wealthy to diminish this inequality. The newly published data from China and India, which have enjoyed huge recent growth rates, reveal that the poor in these countries actually have less wealth than estimated. Oxfam stated in its report that incomes have risen globally by approximately 11.9 trillion euros from 1988 through 2011, however, this increase, close to $12 trillion, has mostly benefited the world's richest 10 percent. The relief organization believes that social inequality is caused by troubling developments in politics and trade. Thus, Oxfam argues that it would be better for governments to engage in more cooperation rather than competing on trying to make their national firms pay less tax. Additionally, there is a suggestion that governments should focus on employees and environmental factors rather than on the interests of capital owners among the other solutions provided in the report.
Patronizing warning against protectionism
Chinese President Xi Jinping, who attended the 47th World Economic Forum, held in Davos, Switzerland, and delivered the opening speech for the first time, both defended globalization and opposed protectionist economic policies. Since the crisis in 2008, the statements and discussions on protectionist measures occasionally brought up by the U.S. and France were mostly forgotten when the U.S. presidential office was transferred from George W. Bush to Barack Obama. Trump's protectionism-based discourse seems to have forced the Chinese president to convey the message at Davos.
Stating that countries should devote themselves to the open global economic system, Xi Jinping asserted that no one would win in trade wars and drew an analogy that economic policies aimed at protecting the domestic economy is like locking yourself in a dark room. Even though it would keep out the wind and rain, Xi emphasized that the light and air would not come in either and highlighted that such a trade war would not have a winner. The Chinese president, without uttering Trump's name but implying he was speaking about him, added that no country has the right to make policies that hurt others and that international agreements such as the Paris Climate Agreement should not be unilaterally annulled. He affirmed that, otherwise, the future of the next generation will be put at risk. The world is impatiently waiting to see Trump's policies after his inauguration.
