On the National Day of the Republic of Bulgaria - March 3, the Bulgarian Embassy in Canada held a flag-raising ceremony before the Ottawa City Hall. Representatives of the Bulgarian community, local citizens, federal MPs and senators attended the event. The ceremony was held with the kind hospitality of the City of Ottawa.

Mrs. Romina Chencheva, member of the Board of Directors of the Bulgarian Community in Ottawa-Gatineau Capital Region and a representative of the local young Bulgarian professionals was Master of the Ceremony. After the performance of the national anthems of both Bulgaria and Canada and the raising of the Bulgarian flag, on behalf of the Mayor of Ottawa Mr. Mark Sutcliffe the Deputy Mayor of the Canadian capital Mr. David Brown extended congratulations to the Bulgarian community on this important occasion. He highlighted the contribution of the Bulgarian community to the development of the city, to its diversity and potential.

On behalf of the Republic of Bulgaria, the Bulgarian Ambassador Mr. Plamen Georgiev extended warm congratulations to all Bulgarians on the occasion of the National Day. He draw the attention on the significance of March 3 for the unity of all Bulgarians around the globe, emphasized the importance of remembering our history and identity, inseparable part of which was the sacrifice of thousands of known and unknown compatriots who gave their lives for our freedom, as well as the dozens of generations of Bulgarians who fought for a more free and just country. Ambassador Georgiev highlighted the importance of the Bulgarian diaspora in Canada, which contributes to the diversity of the local communities and their traditions and has become a bridge for the development of the bilateral relations between Bulgaria and Canada. Mr. Georgiev also pointed out the need to further strengthen the ties between the two countries and called for a closer cooperation in upholding the unity between the allies to protect their shared values ​​– for the sake of their common security and prosperity.

Mr. Chandra Arya, a member of the Canadian Parliament and representative of the Canada-Bulgaria Inter-Parliamentary Friendship Group congratulated all Bulgarians with this important for them date, highlighted the resilience of the Bulgarian people who suffered nearly 500 years of slavery and pointed out the importance of the Bulgarian diaspora from the Capital region for the development of the local communities.

In his address, Mr. Anton Minkov, President of the Bulgarian Community in Ottawa-Gatineau Capital Region underlined the excellent interaction of the Bulgarians in Ottawa with the local Canadian authorities, outlined the difficult path traveled by our nation in achieving the cherished goal of freedom, and dispatched a strong message for unity to all Bulgarians in Canada.