Legislation officials and experts from Asia kicked off a two-day forum in Seoul on Wednesday aimed at enhancing their cooperation to improve legal systems for social and economic advancement.

More than 1,500 participants, including four justice ministers, from 20 countries, are participating in the second annual Asian Forum of Legislative Information Affairs at KINTEX in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province.

“Asia is stepping into the limelight in the 21st century in many aspects of economic, social, and cultural life. In order to play a pivotal role in shaping our global society, extensive sharing of experiences of legislative advancement and knowledge in various fields is essential,” Minister of Government Legislation Jeong Sun-tae said in his opening address.

“I hope that the forum will serve as a catalyst for co-existence and co-prosperity across Asia,” he added.

Korea has been hosting the forum since 2011 seeking to establish itself as a center of legislative collaboration among Asian countries, his ministry said in a statement.

An Jian, deputy director of Legislative Affairs Office of China, pointed out that Asian countries need to address problems stemming from their differences in laws, which often hamper communication and exchanges of economy and trade.

“Therefore, we need to strengthen legislative exchanges and communication among nations, and discuss and deliberate on the legal problems and their relevant issues,” he added.

Choi Dai-kwan, professor of law at Seoul National University, also noted that in the rapidly globalizing world, cooperation in legislation is “increasingly a necessity.”

“This forum is designed exactly to meet such need for exchanges of ideas and experiences with legislation among Asian countries,” Choi said.

Under the theme “Toward Co-prosperity and Co-existence through Legislative Advancement Across Asia,” the participants are covering a wide range of topics including economic and social development and legislation, corporate legislation, multi-cultural family policy and legislative exchanges and cooperation for green growth.

The participants are expected to issue a joint statement on Thursday before culminating the two-day forum. The ministry also plans to sign memoranda of understanding with the Ukrainian Ministry of Justice and the Vietnamese Ministry of Justice for legislative exchanges and cooperation during the event.

By Oh Kyu-wook (596story@heraldcorp.com)