The problems that have plagued humankind for most of its history can be resolved if the following steps are taken:

Ending poverty

1. The existing wealth in the world should be distributed to the advantage of the world’s poorest people, and the elimination of poverty should be the investment priority for every government and for the international community.

2. Markets should be open and trade reform rather than protectionism should be promoted, which would benefit everyone through the newer markets and trade that it would create.

3. Poorer countries should set up commodity stabilisation schemes to stabilise their export earnings, and protect public revenue by taking strong enforcement action against corruption. This would provide them with additional funds to invest in their own economies.

4. Ultimately, in countries where there is enough space, free migration should be legalised as a tool of wealth redistribution across the world.

Promoting democracy

5. In liberal democracies, there should be greater choice so that people have a real reason to vote. To this end, new political parties should be supported by some public funding, so that the public have a genuine choice of policies to vote for.

6. In countries where democracy is limited or non-existent, powerful countries should not support the repression of democracy for their own strategic interests.

7. Dictators should be offered trade, economic and diplomatic incentives to democratise their countries.

8. A dictator’s attacks on his own people should be met with the intervention of human rights monitors, the arrest and trial of members of the regime, and, as a last resort, internationally supported defensive military action.

Justice

9. Each state and the international community should develop a system of justice to include an element of targeted, proportionate retribution.

10. Imperialism should be consigned to history and all peoples and states should promote self-determination.

Peace

11. Everyone should be committed to the peaceful resolution of disputes, and violence should only be used to defend human life.

12. To stop war, self-determination should be defended, poverty should be eliminated, and democracy should be established throughout the world.

13. Military arms should be substantially reduced, and no-one should agree to fight a war for non-defensive purposes.

14. States which create war should be met with isolation and ultimately military resistance, in order to defend those being attacked.