NEW YORK, May 2, 02 (CWNews.com) - Bulgarian Prime Minister Simeon Saxe-Coburg Gotha-- formerly known as King Simeon II-- will receive the annual Path to Peace Award, bestowed by a foundation that supports the work of the Holy See at the United Nations.
The announcement of the award, made by the Path to Peace Foundation, came less than a month before Pope John Paul II is scheduled to visit Bulgaria. In making the announcement, the Path to Peace Foundation added that the award was intended to honor the Bulgarian leader for his years of service as an exiled king, as well as his recent work as the country's prime minister.
King Simeon II, who was arrested and exiled in 1945 at the age of 8, spent 50 years in exile-- first in Egypt, then in France-- "actively and personally engaged in helping the Bulgarian people, particularly immigrants," the Foundation's statement read. After the fall of Communism he returned to Bulgaria, and in July 2001 he led a populist party to a stunning electoral victory and became prime minister of the new republic.
The Bulgarian leader will receive the Path to Peace Award at ceremonies in New York on June 19. Past recipients of the prize include: the current and former secretaries general of the UN, Boutros Boutros-Ghali and Kofi Annan, respectively; Prince Hans Adam II of Liechtenstein; and former Presidents Corazon Aquino of the Philippines, Lech Walesa of Poland, and Rafael Caldera of Venezuela.
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2. mai 2002