Liberal theories of social justice focus predominantly on the national, rather than international, level, and where they do address international concerns they insist that principles of justice at the national level have priority over principles at the international level. We question the coherence of this arrangement, given liberal theory’s commitment to moral equality of persons as such rather than to that of particular sets of persons. What is at issue is whether liberal theory can provide a coherent basis for international justice at all. If it is to do so, we suggest that it must be prepared to theorize beyond the nation-state, and to take a historical perspective which takes into account the ways in which colonial power and exploitation have given rise to the problems of international justice we face today.
