As part of that effort, Voitkevich recently emailed students at law schools across the United States asking them to sign a petition addressed to the Government of Belarus opposing human rights abuses in that country. To date, he has gained nearly 350 signatures from 13 law schools. His plan is to have the petition printed in an independent newspaper in Belarus to pressure the Belarussian government to take corrective action.

The petition reads, “We, the students of American law schools, express our deepest concern about the human rights violations in Belarus and denounce the underground imprisonments of political dissents. The freedom of speech and association is among the basic human rights which must be protected in any democratic society. We strongly urge the Belarussian government to discontinue the disgraceful practice of discharging students from universities for expressing their political beliefs and release all political prisoners immediately. We shall be monitoring the situation in Belarus and documenting all human rights violations. Our hearts today are with the Belarussian students and people who struggle against the totalitarian regime.”

Students from the following law schools have signed the petition:

• Seton Hall University Law School
• New York University School of Law
• William Mitchell College of Law
• University of Virginia School of Law
• University of Richmond School of Law
• The George Washington University Law School
• Suffolk University Law School
• University of Denver Strum College of Law
• Regent University School of Law
• Northwestern University School of Law
• University of Michigan Law School
• Liberty University School of Law
• University of Arkansas School of Law

“I’m doing this because I am a member of the law student family in the United States, and I want to draw attention to the problem,” explains Voitkevich. “Such conditions should not exist, and I can not just sit back and not do anything, especially when I have experienced myself what it is like to live under such a regime.”

Voitkevich already holds a law degree from a Belarus university. In 1994, he was admitted to the first private law school in Belarus. Following graduation, he obtained a position as a legal research officer with the National Center of Legal Information of Belarus and also began writing articles on international law for legal magazines in his country.

Working within the government, however, he became frustrated and discouraged by the political corruption and lack of opportunities he found within his country. Opting to leave his country, he decided he would attend an American law school so he could study international law and, hopefully, assist with the integration of Belarus into the global community. His goal, he explains, is that through his legal education, he can be a part of bringing about democratic change. Armed with the help of other law school students, the petition is his first step toward helping to make that happen.

The only private law school in New Jersey, Seton Hall University School of Law was founded in 1951, and is located in the city of Newark. Seton Hall Law School offers both day and evening programs leading to the Juris Doctor (J.D.), Master of Laws (LL.M.) and Master of Science in Jurisprudence (M.S.J.) degrees. For more information on Seton Hall Law School, visit law.shu.edu.