What are the Causes of Inequality?

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I- Introduction
In the treatise named “Leviathan” published in 1651, Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679) proposed an early variant of equality among men that inequality did not exist in natural condition, meaning everyone is born equal; however, inequality's existence was the result of civil laws (Hobbes & Gaskin, 1998). In this sense, inequality is generally referred to social inequality which is characterized by the existence of unequal opportunities and rewards for different social positions or statuses within a group or society; plus, this negative social phenomenon contains structured and recurrent patterns of unequal distributions of goods, wealth, opportunities, rewards, and punishments (Crossman, 2012).
Throughout the nation’s 2000-year history, Cambodia, a developing Southeast Asian country located on the Indochina Peninsula, has experienced a number of glories and tragedies; as a matter of fact, it was until 1993 that the democratic election, supported by the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC), were conducted to restore peace in Cambodia under a coalition government (CIA World Factbook, 2013). In order to transform from the negative peace which is just the absent of direct violence to the positive peace meaning the absent of cultural and structural violence, Cambodia, the younger member of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), has been trying as hard as possible to address the problem of inequality with the obvious hope that if inequality is not natural, according to Hobbes, but rather constructed, there are probably chances to level down its impacts or even demolish its existence.
Nevertheless, as income inequality as well as gender inequality are the two outstanding types of inequality equippe...

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...Institute of Cambodia, Phnom Penh.
Pou, S. (June 26, 2013). Cambodia is ingrained with corruption, political patronage. The Cambodia Daily. Retrieved December 20, 2013 from http://www.cambodiadaily.com/opinion/cambodia-is-ingrained-with-corruption- political-patronage-32120/
Prak, K, B, & Schuette, S. (2007). Gender and Women in politics in Cambodia. Henrich Boll Foundation: Cambodia.
Ros, S. & Chor, C. (2012). Joint press release: Results of the Commune/Sangkat Council Elections 2012: further efforts required to achieve quantitative and qualitative female representation in politics in Cambodia.
Thucydides, Dent, J. M., & Dutton, E. P. (1910). The Peloponnesian War. London & New York.
Transparency International (2013). Corruption perceptions index 2013. Transparency International. Retrieved December 20, 2013 from http://www.transparency.org/cpi2013/results

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