I congratulate you on the occasion of the National Day of Bulgaria – March 3. Today we celebrate the 147th anniversary of the Liberation of Bulgaria. We honor the memory of all heroes – awakeners, spiritual leaders, revolutionaries and warriors who achieved our freedom and bequeathed to us the unifying power of the national ideal.
This is how Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov greeted Bulgarians on the occasion of the National Day.
Here is the entire text without editorial intervention:
In this national cause nearly a century and a half ago, thousands of Chetniks, volunteers, farmers and artisans, people without titles and without security for the future, stood against a huge empire because they knew that freedom has a high price, and slavery is destructive to the human soul. Our freedom was won with the last cartridge, with the last morsel of bread, with the last breath of those who did not reconcile. They also showed us that freedom always goes hand in hand with a sense of honor and dignity.
Our future is also encoded in Bulgaria's heroic past. The truest way to honor the memory and preserve the legacy of our ancestors, for whom the Fatherland is above all, is to focus on the prosperity of our country today. Bulgaria - the home in which we live and want our children to live better and better - is the greatest value for which we must make efforts together every day.
History has repeatedly shown that in Europe we love and value freedom. Today, the challenges are different, but once again the stake is lasting peace on our continent. Only unity, foresight and leadership in our democratic European family will guarantee a prosperous and strong Europe.
Source: FOCUS