Waging Peace:  Somalia

Conflict Intervention

The Carter Center's Conflict Resolution Program monitored developments in Somalia during the U.N. troop presence there. In spring and summer of 1993, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter quietly urged the United Nations to return to its original humanitarian mission in Somalia rather than continue to involve itself in the restoration of law and order. When military action by U.N. peacekeepers resulted in the death of dozens of Somali citizens, he issued a public statement denouncing those actions.

In addition, local faction leader General Mohamed Farah Aidid wrote to President Carter requesting him to act as a mediator to resolve a confrontation he was having with the U.N. peacekeeping forces. President Carter declined a mediation role and instead passed along to U.N. officials Aidid's request for an independent commission to investigate the events in Mogadishu in which he was implicated, an idea that President Carter endorsed. In October 1993, President Carter also issued a public statement urging the release of Michael Durant, a helicopter pilot being held hostage by Aidid, and a week later, Durant was released.

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Advancing Human Rights

In 1988, President Carter contacted President Siad Barre requesting commutation for eight political prisoners sentenced to death for belonging to a "subversive organization." The organization was actually a community group. In January 1989, President Barre arranged for a blanket amnesty for all political prisoners. The amnesty expedited the prisoners' release.

The Carter Center assists victims of human rights abuse, nongovernmental organizations, governments struggling to build institutions to protect human rights, and intergovernmental agencies. Through personal intervention, President Carter has lent his voice to help individuals worldwide whose rights have been violated.

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