President Michael D. Higgins is among those paying heartfelt tributes to former US President Jimmy Carter, who died yesterday at the age of 100.
As the 39th President of the United States, he served in the White House between 1977 and 1981, and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002 for his work promoting and expanding human rights.
In a statement, President Higgins called President Carter a “principled man who dedicated his life to seeking to advance the cause of peace across the world.”
“Almost uniquely as a former President, his greatest legacy will however perhaps be his distinguished record and commitment to human rights in the decades following his Presidency.
“This is a legacy that was given international recognition when Jimmy Carter in 2002 became the only U.S. President to receive the Nobel Peace Prize after leaving office,” President Higgins said.
He continued: “Through the Carter Center, which early in its work acquired a reputation for integrity in its many election observation missions, through his work as a founding member of The Elders, and as a prolific author right up until recent years, such work by him was always expressed as a pursuit of hope.
“President Carter provided a constant voice of the normative in his public policy, the importance of using the resources of reconciliation, and of promoting peace and dialogue.
“This work, in the public world, was in addition to his voluntary work with charities such as Habitat for Humanity and in his privileging of the value of community work. He provided consistent support for those seeking to build a better and more just world, helped to provide greater access to healthcare to many of the most vulnerable across the planet, and drew attention to human rights abuses wherever he saw them.”
President Higgins also fondly recalled his own encounters with President Carter in Ireland, Central America and Africa, and stressed his role in achieving peace in Northern Ireland.
“I know from my conversations with President Carter, that this was an interest which he retained in the decades after he left office. Indeed, this was an emphasised theme he included during his visit to Áras an Uachtaráin in 1995 when he met President Mary Robinson.”
Taoiseach Simon Harris also paid tribute to the former US president: "Jimmy Carter's legacy is a reminder of what diplomacy can achieve, the peace deal he helped to forge between Israel and Egypt stands to this day.
"He was a keen supporter of peace in Ireland and a respected voice on the road to the Good Friday Agreement," he added.
"The world has lost a great humanitarian, the United States has lost a great President, and a family has lost a wonderful decent man."
Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheál Martin called President Carter “a humanitarian to the end,” and someone with a “deep commitment to peace in the Middle East, human and civil rights, housing, and ending the arms race between the US and the Soviet Union.”
He added: "The personification of public service, his work extended to our own island, as he took the first decisive steps to proactive and transformational US engagement on Northern Ireland. This commitment to peace in Ireland endures today.”
U.S. Ambassador to Ireland Claire Cronin said President Carter has left “an indelible mark” on the world.
“The Camp David Accords, one of his most significant achievements, brought about a historic peace agreement between Egypt and Israel, demonstrating his belief in the power of diplomacy and dialogue,” she said.
Ms Cronin also pointed to Carter’s legacy in Ireland.
“In 1977, as Northern Ireland was engulfed in The Troubles, President Carter issued the first formal statement on Northern Ireland by a U.S. president. This groundbreaking initiative established the precedent for the pivotal role successive U.S. presidents would play in securing peace and lay the groundwork for the Good Friday Agreement.
“His message was clear: peace is possible through dialogue and mutual respect. This statement not only resonated with the people of Northern Ireland but also galvanised international support for peace efforts in the region.”
