The Carter Center and its Council of Presidents and Prime Ministers of the Americas has initiated a multi-year project to work with governments and civil society in the Americas to develop concrete strategies to fight corruption and ensure transparency of government transactions with business. Advances in the hemisphere could serve as a model for the rest of the world. Transparency will improve investor confidence, spur economic growth, provide better public services to the population, and increase public confidence in democratic institutions.
Violence is never an acceptable method for resolving political conflict.
I hope Paraguayans will use this tragedy to find ways to strengthen and prevent further threats to their democracy. 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. Among the signatories was Paraguay President Juan Carlos Wasmosy.