From June 27-29, the 2nd Asian Forum of Legislative Information Affairs (AFOLIA) will be held in Ilsan, South Korea and SolBridge students will have the opportunity to attend the three-day forum.

Representatives from the Ministry of Government Legislation (MOLEG) visited SolBridge in early March to share information with students about the upcoming forum as well as explain the role of the Ministry.

In a presentation to approximately 30 students, including visitors from Malaysia, the mission of the ministry is to “promote a fair society and establish an advanced legal system by revising or abolishing cumbersome laws” while at the same time, “improving the nation’s legal institutions.”

“The purpose of the ministry is to promote open legislation,” explained Ik-hyeon Rhee, Director-General of MOLEG, “and the fair implementation of legislation.”

Some of the areas that the ministry strives to promote include Easy-to-Understand Statute Projects (simplifying legal jargon in various languages) as well as Customized Legal Information Project (One-click practical legal information search).

This summer MOLEG will host the 2nd Asian Forum of Legislative Information Affairs along with the National Research Council for Economics, Humanities and Social Sciences and the Korean Public Law Association. During the three-day event, participants will “discuss and share legislative experience and techniques of each Asian country, explore common ways to advance legislation throughout Asia, and make one Asia through legislation.” At the previous forum, held from November 9-11, 2001, over 2,500 legislative representatives, including the Justice Ministers of Cambodia and Uzbekistan, Vice Justice Ministers of Vietnam, and the Under Secretary of the Philippines’ Department of Justice attended. Some of the agendas covered at the first forum included green legislation, disaster prevention legislation, and the legislation of North and South Korea.

More of the same agendas are expected at the forum in June, including international tax laws, rural modernization, and policies for multi-cultural families and immigrants.

For SolBridge students who have been invited to attend (free bus service to and from the event as well as meals) it will be a rewarding experience for them to take part in this international forum with its exchange of legislative information.

According to Jeong Sun-Tae, Minister of Government Legislation, the upcoming forum will be an “effective channel for sharing legislative experiences among Asian countries” and that it “will also be an important occasion to recognize that the advancement of our legislative system is the basis for future economic growth and development into an advanced nation.”