The «right to have economic rights» and the democratic will trans-formation

This article aims to show that a coherent conception of civic solidarity must incorporate a transnational dimension, which is especially relevant in the realms affecting human development. In order to show this connection the article analyses the limits of the Arendtian conception of «the social». It also explores the insufficiency of the ideal of citizenship entailed in the «right to have rights» when many states lack means to ensure the basic protections to their citizens. In our world, the protection of the basic conditions for human life points to the constitutionalization of the global institutions related with development. The incorporation of a right to development in order to legitimate a global constitution implies the integration of a transnational perspective in the democratic will formation of the citizens. The relevant authors considered are Arendt, Rorty, Benhabib, Habermas and Pogge.