Video: Jimmy Carter and the fight for women’s rights

Carter, whose non-profit organisation the Carter Center is known for its advocacy of human rights, has focused his attention in recent years on the treatment of women around the world, publishing a book in 2014 entitled “A Call to Action: Women, Religion, Violence, and Power”.

The former president said that although abuses against women and girls were “by far the most serious human rights violations on earth”, it is an issue that has attracted little attention.

“Part of the reason is that in both in Christianity and in Islam, and also in other religions, there are people who distort the holy scriptures to maintain that in the eyes of God, or Allah, that women are inferior to men,” he said.

Carter said that he had written a letter to Pope Francis, who is expected to make his first official visit to the United States in September, on the issue of women’s rights within the Catholic Church.

“I don’t think that the pope is going to authorise women being priests or even deacons in a church,” he said. “I regret that. But he has, in response to my letter, told me that he would predict that under his leadership women’s role in the church would be greatly expanded. And I trust that he will carry out that commitment.”

Carter added that while the pope had already taken some steps towards addressing the issue, that he didn’t think the Catholic Church was willing to “go all the way” in treating women equally to men.

Cuba and peace in the Middle East

He also discussed the United States’ recent rapprochement with Cuba, an issue he has advocated for many years.

“It was long overdue,” he said, adding that he believed the US embargo against Cuba should be lifted.

Carter went on to talk about peace in the Middle East, blaming Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for a break-down in negotiations.

“I think John Kerry, the secretary of state, did the best he could. He was very aggressive and he failed because of the presence in the leadership of Israel by Netanyahu,” he said. “He’s been a disaster in carrying out the policies of even all his Israeli predecessors.”

“He’s made it clear that under his administration there will be no two-state solution,” Carter said, adding that the peace process was “dead because of Netanyahu”.