City of Québec, Monday, August 11, 2008

Let me begin by saying a big thank you to all of you.

Thank you to Peace Child International.

Thank you to ReGeneration 2008.

And thank you to you, the youth, for presenting me with this award, which is a great honour to me. Truly.

I was born in a country in which poverty, strife, and political violence were endemic.

Haiti, the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere, was the place where I first discovered the value of life, the value of solidarity, the value of freedom, and the value of hope over adversity.

Even though I was forced to flee Haiti with my family at a young age, the memories of my childhood are still etched in my mind.

The sense of duty to my fellow human beings is embedded in my heart.

This is why I recognize and appreciate the value of what you are all doing in your communities.

With a heavy heart, I watched the events leading up to the eruption of violence in Montréal’s north end last night.

Events that force us to reflect; that remind us how urgently we need to lay the foundations of an open and fully inclusive dialogue; that allow youth to express their frustration and to be involved in finding and implementing solutions to re‑establish confidence, solidarity and mutual respect, and improve living conditions in their families, neighbourhoods, cities and communities.

I know you are doing all you can to prevent these situations in your own neighbourhoods; to raise awareness; to build bridges, with keen sense of your responsibilities to act as young citizens in your own right.

Every action matters.

And the actions you are taking are part of the global momentum toward casting off the chains of poverty, hate, injustice, lack of understanding, and indifference.

You are proof that human development rooted in the values of solidarity, compassion, dialogue and justice is the only way we can succeed and is the path we must urgently follow.

And you are demonstrating that you have a key role to play in that success.

I am convinced that the time has come for us to return to more collective values, for us to help one another in a spirit of global solidarity.

This is why I support what you are doing here at the Congress and offer my full assistance to accompany you in our collective quest for a better world.

Dear friends, let us work together to achieve our deepest, albeit most ambitious wish of a better world.

Thank you. I love you.