Why we must face our past: reconciliatory solidarity for global health ethics

BMJ Glob Health. 2026 Mar 18;11(3):e022373. doi: 10.1136/bmjgh-2025-022373.

ABSTRACT

This article proposes a cosmopolitan theory of global health ethics based on reconciliatory solidarity at both local and global levels. The proposed theory provides the ethical and empirical grounds for the moral imperative of global health solidarity that is often called on today. Reconciliatory solidarity requires that a people/nation-state address the historical injustice and the legacies of political violence within its boundary, with the social connection model suggested by the political philosopher Iris M Young. Reconciliatory solidarity has advantages over the prevalent human rights-based approach and utilitarianism in addressing historical injustice. Through the rectifying efforts, true parochial reconciliation would be possible at the local level, serving as the prerequisite for reconciliation beyond national borders. With a fair number of well-ordered societies and nation-states, cosmopolitan reconciliation and genuine global solidarity would be possible.

PMID:41850766 | DOI:10.1136/bmjgh-2025-022373