President Carter to Advance Venezuela Peace and Democracy Accord

15 Jan 2004

Caracas, Venezuela….Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter will travel to Caracas, Venezuela, on behalf of The Carter Center Jan. 25-27 to advance the Peace and Democracy Accord. President Carter will meet with Venezuela President Hugo Chavez, the National Electoral Council, opposition leaders, the National Assembly, and the Supreme Court.

The accord, signed on May 29, 2003, in Caracas by members of the Forum on Negotiation and Agreements with the facilitation of The Carter Center, the Organization of American States, and the United Nations Development Programme, calls on the Venezuelan government and opposition to respect human rights, freedom of expression, and the right to petition for recall referenda of elected officials.

Since September 2002, the OAS and the Center, at the invitation of the government and the opposition Democratic Coordinating committee, have worked to help resolve Venezuela's political crisis. The National Electoral Council invited the two organizations to observe the signature collection process for recall referenda that began in late November 2003 in the context of the May accord. The joint mission observed two processes of signature collection and is now observing the National Electoral Council's verification of those signatures.

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The Carter Center was founded in 1982 by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and his wife, Rosalynn, in partnership with Emory University, to advance peace and health worldwide. A not-for-profit, nongovernmental organization, the Center has helped to improve life for people in more than 65 countries by resolving conflicts; advancing democracy, human rights, and economic opportunity; preventing diseases; improving mental health care; and teaching farmers to increase crop production. To learn more about The Carter Center, please visit: www.cartercenter.org.
 

CONTACT: Pedro Antonuccio
in Venezuela, 58-416-638-5541
or 58-212-992-5624
Kay Torrance
in Atlanta, 1-404-420-5129
 

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