Whereas human society is enjoying material affluence hitherto unknown in history, thanks to a large extent to the high degree of development of science, technology, information and telecommunication;

Whereas human beings have in the process tended to espouse the values of pragmatism, contributing to the corruption of our morals and of our conscience;

Whereas with our humanity belittled by the cultural process of self-proliferation of science and technology, we are transforming our society into a dehumanized community;

Whereas the development and deployment of arsenals of mass destruction including chemical, biological, radio-active and nuclear weapons on one side and the predominant trends of egoism and chauvinism on the other, as well as the discords between communities, religions, races and nations are seriously endangering peace and prosperity of humanity;

We, members of the world intellectual community and participants assembled in Seoul for the conference commemorating the 17th Anniversary of the UN International Day of Peace, 24-26 September 1998, stand at a historical crossroad to re-evaluate our experience with civilization at the closing of the century and the opening of the New Millennium, hereby Resolve to adopt the following Declaration:

First, we, the people who have experienced the excesses of an advanced state of materialism, science, and technology, should break away from the trends of a dehumanizing, alienating, and deprecating society, and construct a human-centered society where once again human beings become masters of their affairs and of history.

Second, we should establish righteous cultural norms based on a civilizational view of history in order to free ourselves from a social norm built on the rule of force and the law of the jungle with "the strong preying on the weak," and create a civilization where human beings live truly as human beings.

Third, we have come through exclusionary nationalism and class struggle ideologies and arrived today at the true era of a global village in a dynamic process of globalization and democratization. Therefore, we appeal to the world for the establishment of a Universal Democracy that guarantees the freedom, equality and prosperity of all humanity as well as equal rights and co-existence among the major and minor powers alike.

Fourth, at this historical juncture when we face a new age of globalization, democratization, and welfarization, we, the people of the world, should overcome regional conflicts to create a Regional Cooperation Society and upgrade it to a Global Common Society under the rule of PAX UN to realize a permanent world peace and a culture-welfared society.

Fifth, we, the people assembled here, determined to achieve such objectives, propose hereby the promotion of a Social Peace Movement thatwould foster sincere mutual trust and the spirit of reconciliation and cooperation among all peoples, and we strongly urge the launching of a Second Renaissance Movement to construct a humanistic society, a culture-welfared society, and a universal democratic society.