The Nation mourns the loss of President Gerald Ford, who contributed to the advancement of international religious freedom when he signed the Helsinki Final Act in 1975, by which the U.S., Canada, the Soviet Union and 32 European countries agreed to respect human rights, including fundamental freedoms of religion, thought and conscience.  He helped Soviet Jews gain freedom by signing the Jackson-Vanik Amendment, which denied most-favored nation trading status to nations with non-market economies that restricted free emigration.  (Source:  Dec. 28, 2006 article by Howard M. Friedman, Professor of Law, University of Toledo.)  The Council honors President Ford's contributions to religious freedom.