Lawmakers from 33 countries will gather at the Asian Forum of Legislative Information Affairs (AFOLIA) that will be held in Incheon, South Korea, on November 10-11, 2011. Chair of the conference, South Korea’s Minister of Government Legislation, Sun-Tae Jeong talks to ALB about the importance of building a pan-Asian legislative platform.
Q: South Korea is hosting this pan-Asia legislative conference for the first time. What do you hope to achieve?
A: South Korea has played an increasingly important role in international affairs—it chaired the 2010 G-20 Summit, and will host the Nuclear Security Summit in 2012 and PyeongChang Winter Olympics in 2018.
Similar effort is exhibited in the legal front. The Ministry of Government Legislation(MOLEG) strives to establish South Korea as a key player of legislation in the international society by sharing our legislative experience and the know-how that we have established and pro-actively promote advancement in our legislation to other Asian countries.
Through AFOLIA, the Korean government hopes to build a network and infrastructure where we can share our legislative experience and technique with our Asian neighbours.
Q: Who will be participating in this two-day forum?
A: Thirty three countries, including China, Japan, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Cambodia, Ukraine, are sending their delegations to the conference. They are the ministers or vice-ministers of their respective legislative organizations. Government officials of countries studying at the KDI School of Public Policy and Management and Ewha Women’s University will also participate in the forum.
Q: What are the unifying themes or topics of interests to all the participants coming from various parts of the world?
A: This forum will be the first international meeting in legislation held in Korea. We would like to seize this opportunity to showcase Korea's legislative system, which has been the foundation of our rapid economic rise for the past 60 years, and to provide a platform where participating countries can share updates of their legislative information.
Since economic development is one of the hot topics that concerns most of the participants, many Asian countries would be interested in studying Korea's model of economic success, which has been made possible by Korea’s legislation on economic development.
As sustainability has become a pressing global issue and serious natural disasters have ravaged many parts of the world recently, panel discussions on urban development, green growth, and disasters prevention will be highlights of the conference.
Q: What do you think MOLEG and the AFOLIA conference can achieve in the long run to benefit global legislative bodies?
A: MOLEG is the pillar of the nation’s legislative administration. We strive to advance the legal system in Korea and to uphold the rule of law in the country. Our main roles are to examine and review all bills drafted by other ministries and present them to the National Assembly; to oversee executive regulations containing professional and technical provisions; and to monitor the process of law making.
In addition, we are currently conducting reviews and comparative studies of law and order of other countries. By analyzing these foreign laws, it will enhance our understanding of the theories and mechanism of other legal systems, which in turn can help us better adapt to rapid development and changes in our domestic and international legal environment.
The motto of AFOLIA is "One Asia with legislation.” I expect AFOLIA to become a platform where legislative information can be shared among the Asian countries, and mobilize the legislative communities to address and hopefully resolve problems threatening human dignity, wealth disparity between the rich and poor, and alleviate the suffering caused by natural disasters.
AFOLIA should also become an arena facilitating the networking of various legislative organizations in each country, so that member countries can share their legislative information and experience, and helps to create a stable international investment climate.
Asian Forum of Legislative Information Affairs
Dates: November 10-11, 2011
Venue: Songdo Convensia
Songdo-dong, Yeonsu-gu, Incheon City, South Korea 406-741
Tel: +82-32-210-1114/5
Fax: +82-32-210-1005
http://afolia.moleg.go.kr
Q: South Korea is hosting this pan-Asia legislative conference for the first time. What do you hope to achieve?
A: South Korea has played an increasingly important role in international affairs—it chaired the 2010 G-20 Summit, and will host the Nuclear Security Summit in 2012 and PyeongChang Winter Olympics in 2018.
Similar effort is exhibited in the legal front. The Ministry of Government Legislation(MOLEG) strives to establish South Korea as a key player of legislation in the international society by sharing our legislative experience and the know-how that we have established and pro-actively promote advancement in our legislation to other Asian countries.
Through AFOLIA, the Korean government hopes to build a network and infrastructure where we can share our legislative experience and technique with our Asian neighbours.
Q: Who will be participating in this two-day forum?
A: Thirty three countries, including China, Japan, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Cambodia, Ukraine, are sending their delegations to the conference. They are the ministers or vice-ministers of their respective legislative organizations. Government officials of countries studying at the KDI School of Public Policy and Management and Ewha Women’s University will also participate in the forum.
Q: What are the unifying themes or topics of interests to all the participants coming from various parts of the world?
A: This forum will be the first international meeting in legislation held in Korea. We would like to seize this opportunity to showcase Korea's legislative system, which has been the foundation of our rapid economic rise for the past 60 years, and to provide a platform where participating countries can share updates of their legislative information.
Since economic development is one of the hot topics that concerns most of the participants, many Asian countries would be interested in studying Korea's model of economic success, which has been made possible by Korea’s legislation on economic development.
As sustainability has become a pressing global issue and serious natural disasters have ravaged many parts of the world recently, panel discussions on urban development, green growth, and disasters prevention will be highlights of the conference.
Q: What do you think MOLEG and the AFOLIA conference can achieve in the long run to benefit global legislative bodies?
A: MOLEG is the pillar of the nation’s legislative administration. We strive to advance the legal system in Korea and to uphold the rule of law in the country. Our main roles are to examine and review all bills drafted by other ministries and present them to the National Assembly; to oversee executive regulations containing professional and technical provisions; and to monitor the process of law making.
In addition, we are currently conducting reviews and comparative studies of law and order of other countries. By analyzing these foreign laws, it will enhance our understanding of the theories and mechanism of other legal systems, which in turn can help us better adapt to rapid development and changes in our domestic and international legal environment.
The motto of AFOLIA is "One Asia with legislation.” I expect AFOLIA to become a platform where legislative information can be shared among the Asian countries, and mobilize the legislative communities to address and hopefully resolve problems threatening human dignity, wealth disparity between the rich and poor, and alleviate the suffering caused by natural disasters.
AFOLIA should also become an arena facilitating the networking of various legislative organizations in each country, so that member countries can share their legislative information and experience, and helps to create a stable international investment climate.
Asian Forum of Legislative Information Affairs
Dates: November 10-11, 2011
Venue: Songdo Convensia
Songdo-dong, Yeonsu-gu, Incheon City, South Korea 406-741
Tel: +82-32-210-1114/5
Fax: +82-32-210-1005
http://afolia.moleg.go.kr
