Introduction
The debate on global justice is at the core of global ethics. This article states that, and I agree, most of these debates on global justice are conducted by scholars from Europe or America. They ignore the concepts and views of other parts like Africa and the Global South. Ignoring or not being interested in the ideas and concepts of underdeveloped regions has led to a lack of smooth intercultural, international, and interreligious exchange of ideas. Obviously, due to some parts of the world being left in these global debates, the concepts or ideas raised during these debates face a lot of doubts on whether they will be able to move across regional or cultural horizons. Since the concepts of justice from European and American scholars are there in the light and can be accessed by anyone, Anke Granes did a wonderful task and discussed the concepts of justice by African s scholars. Indeed, the voices of African scholars or other scholars from third-world countries remain marginalized. Some of these African scholars include; Henry Odeka Oruka- a philosopher from Kenya. Teodros Kiros- an Ethiopian philosopher; and the Ubuntu debate. (Granes & A, pp: abstract). As for me, I can argue that ignorance, and poverty, are the main obstacles to development in these countries.
Reaction
According to Granes & A (intro: par4), most of the moral perception of the so-called global justice is derived chiefly from ideas of famous American or European philosophers like Locke, Aristotle, and Kant. The norms and values of philosophers from Africa and North America are rarely considered during the global justice debate. If the values, norms, and ideas of philosophers from these areas are not considered, I would argue that this debate on global justice is not global. Agnes used African philosophy’s concept of global justice to explore non-western concepts that can be utilized and contribute something to this debate, discussed some states in the academic area that contribute to the marginalization of African authors and their concepts, and lastly discussed the importance of interesting concepts, and ideas from all cultures around the glove during these debates on global justice.
Concepts of Global Justice in the African Philosophy
Political freedom and bodily needs by Kenyan philosopher (Henry Odera Oruka)
In his work, Odera Oruka suggests that there should be a change in the whole perspective in the debate on global justice. Odera points out that the current debate on global justice ignores bodily needs. I agree with the argument of this Kenyan philosopher; the most vital thing this debate should be concerned with right now is the issue of fairness across all continents. Continents like Africa and Asia are looting in poverty and ignorance. This debate on global justice should first of all focus on dealing with hunger rather than legal subtleties. Odera argues that there should be a right to a human minimum which should be treated as the basis of all rights (Granes & A, pp: 129). The definition of justice between these continents differs in America and Europe and far away from Africa. To be on the same attitude, it is good to deal with significant problems like hunger first.
Right to food (Teodros Kiros-Ethiopian philosopher)
Teodros argues the primary debate should be about how the nations should increase their economic status; fulfill their biological and material needs. These debates should precede political conditions. He also suggests that access to food should be a basic need (Granes & A, pp: 132). I agree with this argument since many third countries still struggle to feed their citizens, and their economy is deteriorating daily. Already developed countries should not engage in the debate assuming that all countries are the same; there are some incidents where Africans are dying due to a lack of essential medical services, clean water, and food access.
Assimilating some concepts as African ethics
Before colonization, Africans had a way of living. Most of them vanished during the error of colonization, but some still exist, like the Ubuntu of Southern Africa. These ethics demonstrate the values and morals of Africans. I accede with the article that some of these ethics, like the Ubuntu, should be accepted as African ethics during the debate on global justice. These ethics have strong meaning to African culture, and ignoring them is unfair.
Injustice in the academics
I agree with the article that it is quite unfortunate that some renowned theorists have not borrowed from an African context. Most ideas and concerns raised by African scholars do not play a part in the global justice debate, but some scholars’ ideas outside Africa have been used (Agnes & A, pp.: 134-135). I would argue that the debate is biased, and those international countries are mean and unfair. Granes did an amazing job and stated some factors that influence the participation of philosophers and African institutions in this debate. Some of the factors mentioned are; canonizing the power of the universities- where the university chooses what will be studied and researched according to the political and social needs. I agree with the article that this led to some cycle of exclusion. Other factors include the place of publication; it is clear the process of publication in developed countries have been made impossible by either increasing the cost or making sure the content of already published book hardly access Europe and America. This way, their ideas rotate in Africa, where it does not have much influence. There is also the issue of language, where authors are restricted from using English which is not their native language, and the lack of resources makes it hard to conduct research and publish materials (Granes & A, p. 135-136).
Conclusion
Generally, the argument of this article is outstanding. From the article, I can clearly state that the debate on global justice is not global since it does not consider the needs of human beings living in third-world countries. Concerns raised in this debate are just for already developed countries. The main issue in third-world countries is hunger and poverty, which are not involved in the debate. Also, the debate does not address some values, ethics, and concepts of these countries. With all these things missing, I agree with the article that there are huge doubts if this debate on global justice is global?
References
Graness, A., 2015. Is the debate on ‘global justice’s global one? Some considerations in view of modern philosophy in Africa. Journal of Global Ethics, 11(1), pp.126-140.
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