Waging Peace: Ecuador

Go to: Monitoring Elections | Mediating Conflict | Andean-U.S. Dialogue Forum | Building a Model for Transparency | Urging a Moratorium on Arms Sales 

In the last decade, Ecuador underwent major institutional and democratic transformation. In this context, The Carter Center was extended an invitation in 2007 by the government of Rafael Correa to participate in several efforts including the accompaniment of the Constituent Assembly process as well as the facilitation of a citizen dialogue process between Ecuador and Colombia. The Carter Center opened a field office in August 2007 and worked intensively to observe the electoral process leading up to Ecuador's Constituent Assembly elections on Sept. 30, 2007, and subsequently monitored and reported on the constitution drafting, approval, and implementation process over the following two years.

Ecuador-Colombia Relations
In addition to supporting an inclusive and informed Constituent Assembly process, The Carter Center also facilitated a dialogue between influential individuals from Ecuador and Colombia to improve Ecuador–Colombia relations. This group of individuals maintained its efforts following the diplomatic rupture between the two countries in March 2008, while former U.S. President Jimmy Carter tried to open channels of communication between the two governments. The Carter Center also implemented a peace and conflict analysis in two communities of the Ecuadorian northern border in partnership with the United Nations Development Program and Fundación Futuro Latinoamericano, a local NGO, which assisted the crafting of public policies for development in the border zone.

Monitoring Elections

2007 Constituent Assembly Election
In response to an invitation by the Supreme Electoral Court  of Ecuador, The Carter Center fielded an electoral observation mission during the Constituent Assembly election held on Sept. 30, 2007.

According to reports from Carter Center observers, who worked in close collaboration with the missions of the Organization of American States and the European Union, on Sept. 30, despite some procedural problems, Ecuadorians turned out to vote in a peaceful, orderly, and legitimate election. Read full text >

Election Reports

View Carter Center election reports for Ecuador >

Mediating Conflict

Dialogue Process
In 2007, The Carter Center initiated a dialogue process between influential individuals from Ecuador and Colombia to promote binational cooperation on projects affecting the lives of citizens at the border and improve mutual understanding between the two countries. Ten Ecuadorians and 10 Colombians participated in this dialogue process, which led to the establishment of the Bi-National Dialogue Group (BDG). This process started in Atlanta with a meeting hosted by former President Jimmy Carter on Nov. 12-14, 2007, and continued through 2009 with a series of meetings and binational initiatives.

By participating in this initiative, BDG members reached a much deeper understanding of the perspectives of the members from their neighboring country. This initiative gained particular importance when a Colombian military operation took place on Ecuadorian soil on March 1, 2008. Despite the increase in tensions between both countries over the event, the group engaged in a constructive dialogue and developed strategies for improving the relations between their countries. Read full text >

Andean-U.S. Dialogue Forum

The Carter Center and International IDEA initiated a dialogue forum between the five Andean countries (Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia) and the United States in 2010.  The purpose of the Andean-U.S. Dialogue Forum, an 18-month series of dialogue sessions held in both the United States and the Andean region, was to:

• Identify a common agenda for the six countries,
• Address misperceptions and misunderstandings between countries,
• Propose innovative solutions to problematic issues, and
• Explore the possibility of bilateral dialogues between pairs of countries with tense relations within the forum.

Between February 2010 and June 2011, the members of the Andean-U.S. Dialogue Forum met four times in Atlanta, Ga.; Lima, Peru; and Washington, D.C.

Read more about The Carter Center/International IDEA-sponsored Andean-U.S. Dialogue Forum >

Building a Model for Transparency

In 1998, The Carter Center launched a project to help the government combat corruption in Ecuador and to develop partnerships between the political and social sectors.  At the time, Ecuador was ranked as one of the most corrupt countries in Latin America, according to Transparency International's Corruption Perception Index. The Center's Americas Program and Conflict Resolution Program began a project in spring 2000 to identify the issues dividing the country and bring national leaders together to discuss them.

Urging a Moratorium on Arms Sales

Although Latin America spends relatively less on defense than most other regions, expenditures on expensive weapons systems divert scarce foreign exchange from more effective investments, and compel neighbors to spend more on defense and, by doing so, generate international tensions. Concerned about an arms race in Latin America, the Carter Center's Council of Presidents and Prime Ministers of the Americas urged governments in the region to pause before embarking on major arms purchases. Between April 1997 and March 1998, 28 current heads of government and 14 former heads of government signed a written pledge to accept a moratorium of two years on purchasing sophisticated weapons. Among the signatories were then Ecuador President Fabián Alarcón Rivera and former President Osvaldo Hurtado.

Learn more about the Carter Center's Americas Program >