Carter does the rounds
Guyana Chronicle
August 13, 2004

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FORMER United States President Jimmy Carter kept a busy schedule yesterday meeting representatives of the main political parties and civil society to assess how best his Atlanta-based centre can stay involved here.

He followed up a one-hour closed door meeting with President Bharrat Jagdeo Wednesday afternoon with sessions yesterday with top officials of the People’s Progressive Party (PPP), the main partner in the governing PPP/Civic alliance, and Opposition Leader and leader of the main opposition People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR), Mr Robert Corbin.

He also met members of the Ethnic Relations Commission and the Indian Arrival Committee.

Carter is due to meet representatives of other parliamentary opposition parties and others today before leaving this afternoon.

He opened his latest Guyana visit Wednesday hoping to help make systems here more responsive to the needs of all Guyanese.

“I have a deep personal interest in Guyana and believe the basic integrity of its political, social, and economic systems must be made more responsive to the needs and aspirations of all Guyanese”, he said in an arrival statement released to the media.

“The purpose of my visit is to assess whether The Carter Center can make a further contribution to this need”, he said.

Carter was invited to visit by President Bharrat Jagdeo when he met the former U.S. President at his Atlanta-based Carter Center in June.

The Nobel Peace prize winner played a central role in Guyana's return to free and fair elections at the October 5, 1992 polls, and the restoration of democracy here.

President Jagdeo announced last month that he had invited President Carter to Guyana to assess how the Carter Center could remain engaged in Guyana despite the closure of its office here.

Carter managed to broker key electoral reforms between the late President Desmond Hoyte and Opposition parties, which led to the October 5, 1992 elections, the first free and fair polls here in almost 30 years.

Before then, Mr Hoyte and his People's National Congress (PNC) had steadfastly resisted implementing changes in the electoral system that had long been characterised by widespread fraud and rigging.

The PPP/Civic won the October 5 elections, ending some 28 years in power by the PNC.

In an earlier statement, Carter noted that the Carter Center has been involved in Guyana for more than a decade.

Carter is accompanied by a six-member delegation - Jason Calder, Assistant Director, Global Development Initiative; David Carroll, Associate Director, Democracy Programme; Larry Frankel, Director, Peace Development; Julie Zollman, International Global Development Initiative, Brian Lewis, Representative, Guyana Field Officer; and Nancy Konigsmark, Mr Carter's Scheduler.

The PPP has welcomed the visit saying it is “a clear indication of his deep and continuing interest in the overall well-being of the Guyanese people and in the democratic renewal process which is unfolding in the country following the restoration of democratic rule in October 1992.”

In a statement, it recalled with “extreme gratitude” the important role Carter and the Carter Center played in the restoration of democracy after more than two decades of authoritarian rule.

“Were it not for the presence of President Carter in the country at the time of the elections in October 1992, the electoral process might once again have been derailed, as was the case in previous elections”, it pointed out.

“The PPP also notes with satisfaction the invaluable role played by the Carter Center in the electoral processes and in the strengthening of democracy in subsequent elections, especially in terms of institutional strengthening and capacity building at the Guyana Elections Commission and in the monitoring of the electoral processes.”

In this regard, the party said it welcomes the presence of the Carter Center once again for general elections due in 2006.

The PPP said it and the entire Guyanese society owe “a special debt of gratitude to President Carter and the Carter Center for the invaluable services it has rendered and continues to render to the country.”

“Regrettably, democracy in Guyana still remains fragile as a consequence of attempts by opposition forces to derail the democratic processes and their refusal to accept the verdict of the Guyanese people as was evident in the elections of 1997 when the PPP/Civic alliance was motivated in the interest of peace and stability to agree to a reduction of its term in office by two years, despite having won the elections which were certified free and fair by local and overseas observers, including the Carter Center.

“In fact, all elections including October1992, had been marred by violence and disturbances orchestrated by the opposition parties”, the PPP said.

It wished Carter and his team every success in its meetings with stakeholders and in his continuing efforts to assist in the forging of a peaceful, cohesive and democratic Guyana.

It also urged the Carter Center to remain involved in Guyana.