November 9, 2009



National Assembly President Tsetska Tsacheva met on November 9, 2009 with young Bulgarians chosen to take part in the official festivities of the European Parliament dedicated to the 20 th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.

In the competition, organized by the Information Office of the European Parliament in Sofia, more than 100 young people took part. Sylvia Vassileva, Viara Pancheva and Angel Ivanov were chosen to represent our country at the celebrations in the capital of the European Parliament, which initiated the idea 89 young people from 27 member countries of the European Union, born in November 1989, to visit Brussels on the day when the Berlin Wall came down, the day when the new Europe was born, as were they.

The three youngsters ,"peers of the democratic changes" ,are students at different universities in the country. Silvia Vassileva and Viara Pancheva study at Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski” ", Angel Ivanov – at the American University in Blagoevgrad. They will attend a solemn session of the European Parliament on November 11, 2009 and will participate in a debate on "What is Europe for me today."

National Assembly President Tsetska Tsacheva congratulated the winners and expressed her confidence that they will be active in the discussions with the President of the European Parliament Jerzy Busek. She asked them to what do they relate the fall of the Berlin Wall and told them how she herself, back in 1989, received the news. “Bulgaria's future depends on the rich intellectual potential of gifted young people such as you and I am happy to be able today to meet you and to voice my hope that you will stay and make your careers here in the country”, she turned to Sylvia, Viara and Angel.

Violeta Simeonova, head of the European Parliament’s Information Bureau in Bulgaria, said during the meeting that their trip to Brussels, which would have been impossible 20 years earlier, represents the spectacular change that has occurred.

Europe for us is mostly the opportunities currently available to us - to develop, to show what we are capable of and to do it anywhere in the world, said Silvia Vassileva. I am very happy that Europe is a place where one is allowed to express his own personality and individuality, a place where there is freedom of speech and thought, and it was not so previously, said the other participant in the European initiative Viara Pancheva.

The young people, who will represent Bulgaria at the celebrations in the European Parliament, handed to the President of the National Assembly a photo album containing pictures of the Berlin wall's demolition and depicting the changes in different countries.

Invited by the Chair of the National Assembly Tsetska Tsacheva, the young Bulgarians were able to acquaint themselves with the work of parliament and to visit the plenary hall, the day before their departure to Brussels.