Members of the Legislative Fellows Program, sponsored by the U.S. State Department, visited Ohio state government recently as guests of the local International Visitors Council.

“My first impression was that I am coming from a rural village to a modernized rural village,” said Vickas Mokal, who is a member of the Punjab Provincial Assembly. “But everyone says if you want to experience the true America or the real America, this is the place to be.”

They visited the Ohio Statehouse, as well as the Thomas J. Moyer Ohio Judicial Center, to learn more about the judiciary.

They met with Ohio Supreme Court Administrative Director Michael Buenger.

“We have a lot of human rights violations back in our part of the world,” said Habeel Iqbal, an attorney from Kashmir. “So I’m looking forward to some kind of network with the human rights groups and the lawyers here. So that I can have a good understanding of issues. It will help me back home.”

The visit provided clarity about how the judicial system works and the checks and balances between the three cornerstones of the government.

“The balance is impeccable,” said Mokal. “The judiciary works independent, works on different issues, and still has its legroom to be better as far as the system is concerned.”

The fellows will be heading to the Professional Fellowship Congress meeting in Washington, D.C. later this month.