Final answer:
Hernando de Soto addresses the economic exclusion faced by two-thirds of the global population who, due to structural barriers often related to socialist policies or infrastructural deficiencies, lack proper legal documentation for identity and property, impeding their participation in the broader market economy.
Step-by-step explanation:
When Hernando de Soto mentions that "socialism 2/3 of the people of the world continue to be unable to document their identity to a broader world of trade", he is likely referring to the significant proportion of the global population that, due to systemic and social barriers often connected to socialist policies or inadequate infrastructure, cannot legally document their existence or property. This lack of documentation hinders their ability to engage in formal economic activities and denies them the protection of the law, effectively excluding them from broader economic participation and the benefits of global trade.
This exclusion can be historically connected to colonial and postcolonial societal structures, where a minority of Europeans and their descendants controlled the majority of wealth and power, leaving indigenous, African, and mixed-race people (mestizos and pardos) largely disenfranchised. In many parts of the world today, especially within socialist or formerly socialist countries, bureaucracy and the absence of a legal framework to document property and identity continue to be obstacles to the full participation of all citizens in the market economy. This situation echoes the historical exclusion that was evident during the colonial period in Latin America, as analyzed by figures like Simón Bolívar and later by Hernando de Soto.