El Salvador

How It Started 

The Carter-Menil Human Rights Foundation was created in 1986 by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and French-American philanthropist Dominique de Menil to promote the protection of human rights worldwide. A $100,000 prize was awarded periodically to individuals or organizations for their outstanding efforts on behalf of human rights. 

Our Work and Methods 

• In 1991, the Carter-Menil Human Rights Prize was awarded posthumously to six Jesuit priests executed on Nov. 16, 1989, by members of the Salvadoran military for their activism. 

• At the prize ceremony, President Carter said, “If we add the courage of … the Jesuit martyrs to our present strength and influence, then a world of peace and human rights, God willing, will someday be ours.” 

Impacts 

• The award enabled other human rights activists to continue the work of the slain priests and focus global attention on their struggle for justice. 

This project ended in 1994. 

How It Started 

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, including education. They also 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.  

Our Work and Methods 

• Between April 1997 and March 1998, 28 current and 14 former heads of government signed a pledge to accept a moratorium of two years on purchasing sophisticated weapons.  

Impacts 

• Among the signatories was El Salvador President Armando Calderón Sol. 

This project ended in 1998.