On September 29th, PanEuropa President Gergana Passy and The Atlantic Club President Solomon Passy will be guests of honor at the celebration of the 80th anniversary of legendary Solidarity leader and former Polish President Lech Walesa and the 40th anniversary of Wałęsa‘s Nobel Peace Prize. President Petar Stoyanov (1997-2002) sent a personal birthday greeting to the Polish President.
Solomon and Gergana Passy will personally present this year’s European Contribution Award “Prof. Ivan Shishmanov” by Lech Wałęsa.
October 1997, Sofia, General Assembly of ATA. Solomon Passy hosts Presidents Lech Wałęsa and Zhelyo Zhelev.
The award “Prof. Ivan Shishmanov” was established in 2017, on the occasion of the 90th anniversary of the establishment of PanEuropa Bulgaria. It is awarded to people who have significantly and consistently contributed to the adoption of European values in Bulgaria and around the world. The Electoral Commission is composed of prominent personalities from political, academic and cultural life. The current winners of the European award are: Simeon Saxe-Coburg Gotha (2017), Petar Stoyanov (2019), Volodymyr Zelensky (2022).
This year, in connection with the upcoming fourth “Prof. Ivan Shishmanov” award for European Contribution, Polish President Lech Wałęsa was nominated. With his significant achievements and leadership qualities, Lech Wałęsa brings with him a memory of one of the most important eras in the history of Eastern Europe. He was Poland’s first democratically elected president after 45 years of communist rule, and his activities played a key role in the fall of the totalitarian regime in Poland. He is a representative of that disappearing species of European politicians who are changing entire eras, armed with the causes of peace, democracy, unity and human rights. As a co-founder of the Solidarity movement, Lech Wałęsa contributed to the flowering of democracy and freedom in the region.
The ceremony granting Lech Wałęsa‘s “Prof. Ivan Shishmanov” award will be another exciting chapter in the history of this prestigious award, which recognizes the outstanding achievements of the personalities who have contributed to the promotion of European values in Bulgaria and around the world.
We would like to thank Aurubis Bulgaria with whose support we are implementing for the fourth time the awarding for European contribution “Prof. Ivan Shishmanov”.
