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The full text of the Shanghai Declaration is as follows:

Shanghai Declaration of the 22nd World Law Congress

(Shanghai, September 9, 2005)

On the occasion of the victory of the world anti-fascist war and the 60th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations, the 22nd World Law Congress sponsored by the World Association of Jurists was held in Beijing and Shanghai, China from September 4th to 10, 2005. More than 500 outstanding representatives from more than 60 countries and international organizations attended the event.

The Congress felt China's remarkable achievements in the economic, social and cultural fields in recent years, as well as its admirable progress in building democracy and the rule of law. The conference is very grateful to the government of China and the people of China for their warm hospitality, and especially thanks to the China Organizing Committee for its great energy and hard work for the preparation and smooth progress of the conference.

Around the theme of "rule of law and international harmonious society", the participants discussed 22 topics, including rule of law, United Nations reform, international terrorism, investment, justice and media, international environment, human rights and alternative dispute resolution, and reached broad consensus.

The Congress held that the rule of law is an important symbol of the progress of human civilization and the best way to solve social contradictions in a peaceful and rational way. Building an international harmonious society through the rule of law conforms to the common aspirations of people all over the world for peace, development and cooperation, and requires the joint efforts of people all over the world.

This session of the General Assembly coincides with a critical moment in the history of mankind. In the era of globalization, information revolution and interdependence, mankind is facing severe challenges of poverty, disease, international terrorism and environmental degradation, and the gap between North and South continues to widen. However, the prospect of building an international harmonious society based on the rule of law, democracy, justice, equality and dignity is equally bright.

The General Assembly believes that international cooperation based on mutual trust and goodwill among world civilizations and cultures is the cornerstone of creating a peaceful and just world. An effective United Nations, the country's compliance with the norms of international law and the peaceful settlement of international disputes are prerequisites for creating a peaceful and just world.

All countries should respect and actively safeguard the diversity of world civilization through dialogue and exchanges on the basis of equality and mutual understanding.

The General Assembly called on all countries to respect and protect human rights and speed up domestic legal procedures for signing and ratifying existing international human rights instruments.

The General Assembly called on all countries to faithfully respect and abide by the norms of international law, promote the rule of law worldwide, and take the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations and other universally recognized norms of international relations as the code of conduct of the international community. Recognizing the central role of the United Nations in the international community, the General Assembly urged world leaders attending the summit held in new york from 6 September 2004 to 6 September 2006 to carry out extensive reform of the United Nations so that the Organization can effectively meet the challenges of the future.

The General Assembly called on all countries to continuously strengthen bilateral and multilateral mutual trust, improve corresponding mechanisms and conflict prevention mechanisms, and jointly safeguard regional and world peace and security.

The General Assembly is deeply concerned about the widening gap between the rich and the poor in the world, and regrets that the current structure of the international economic system and the disputes caused by poverty, scarcity, disease and other conditions have been difficult to solve for a long time.

The Congress firmly believes that all countries should enjoy the economic opportunities brought by globalization equally, and calls on international economic institutions including but not limited to the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the World Trade Organization to take appropriate measures to establish a just and rational new international economic order. The General Assembly called on all countries to make joint efforts to complete the Doha Round of World Trade Organization negotiations and achieve the Millennium Development Goals set by the United Nations Summit in 2000.

The General Assembly urged all countries to formulate laws and manage natural resources and the environment under the guidance of international legal principles. All countries should commit themselves to the goal of sustainable development.

The Conference noted the current concern of the international community about nuclear proliferation. Call on all countries to properly solve this problem through political, diplomatic and international cooperation, commit themselves to multilateral arms control and disarmament, and further strengthen the non-proliferation mechanism.

The General Assembly appreciated the measures taken by countries at the regional, bilateral and national levels under the auspices of the United Nations and within the framework of international law to prevent and curb international crimes such as terrorism, drug trafficking, human trafficking and money laundering. The General Assembly urged all countries to strengthen coordination in combating international crime by further concluding and implementing cooperation agreements, enacting relevant laws and taking other effective measures.

The congress advocates that leaders of legal education and legal practice should strengthen the exchange of legal education, promote the continuous improvement of the judicial system and realize social fairness and justice.

The Congress firmly believes that an international harmonious society based on the rule of law is of great significance to safeguarding world peace and promoting common development.

Delegates at the meeting reiterated the purpose that the World Association of Jurists has been adhering to since its establishment-maintaining world peace through the rule of law.