REMARKS BY PRESIDENT MCALEESE AT THE CENTRE FOR AUTISM, SOFIA, BULGARIA THURSDAY 26TH MARCH 2009
REMARKS BY PRESIDENT MCALEESE AT THE CENTRE FOR AUTISM, SOFIA, BULGARIA THURSDAY 26TH MARCH 2009
Добър ден, дами и господа, приятели!
Good Afternoon Ladies and Gentlemen.
It is a real pleasure for me to be here today, and I would like to thank Ani Andanova and Mirena Velkova for helping to arrange this visit. It is obvious that that you are all working with great passion to support parents and to improve the lives of the children, both here at this Centre, and all over Bulgaria, through your training services. Such enthusiasm and joy in your work is wonderful to witness. Most of all I would like to say a very special Здравейте деца! [Hello children!] to the children who are here today. Meeting you is a highlight of my visit to Bulgaria.
For families faced with a diagnosis of autism it is so essential that they do not feel alone, that there are support services to help them and their children move confidently through life. Autism is a complex diagnosis and every year research reveals more and more that we did not know about it. One thing we do know however is that early diagnosis and intervention is without question of the utmost importance. Education is a crucial key to unlocking the autistic child’s best potential and centres such as this with their expertise and their unique vocation are essential to the autistic child’s proper development. It is a matter of great pride to the people of Ireland that in the huge effort that went into creating this centre there was support from Ireland.
John O’Gorman is here today and I want to express my thanks and appreciation to him for his selfless contribution to the development of the disability sector in Bulgaria. Over the past twenty years, John has been here sharing expertise, providing funding and offering advice. He has made many friends here and he is a true friend of Bulgaria. You could say he is an unofficial ambassador for Ireland in Bulgaria and for Bulgaria in Ireland.
Today’s Bulgaria is a completely different country from the one John first encountered all those years ago. Bulgaria has transformed itself into a modern, ambitious democratic state, a full and equal partner in the European Union. It faces into its challenges, including those in the disability sector, with determination and with the knowledge that it has good friends who can be relied on for support.
I am grateful to Sofia Municipality for accommodating this visit today. We know from our own experience in Ireland that great things happen where there is close cooperation between the State, the local authorities and the voluntary sector. This Centre is a testament to what can be achieved through such partnership and cooperation, and I hope that it will lead to the expansion of such services throughout Bulgaria.
Желая ви здраве и късмет! Мерси много!
I wish you health and good luck
Thank you very much