Welcome to the Official page of the Presidency of the Portuguese Republic

Madam President of the National Council for the Promotion of Voluntary Work
Mister President of the Portuguese Red Cross
Ladies and Gentlemen representing the voluntary work organizations
Dear friends

I am very pleased to be here with you, today, because the theme of voluntary work, as you are probably aware, is of particular interest to me.

Since taking office, my husband has awarded special regard for the role of voluntary work in the development of a new culture of solidarity.

The proposal he put forward to the Portuguese for a “civic commitment” in the fight against poverty, inequalities and social exclusion is based upon the conviction that citizens are especially responsible for those who, for diverse reasons, were inhibited from their civic and social rights, from their personal autonomy, or from their capacity to respond effectively to sickness, deficiency, physical or intellectual weakness, to misfortune or to the most basic needs of survival.

We know that a society stamped by strong social inequalities and by considering situations of poverty as commonplace, will have many difficulties in facing the challenges we are now confronting and consequently much more those which we will have to face in the future.

I feel that, worse than such inequalities, is the lack of understanding with which many continue to regard such situations.

Hiding reality or lowering our arms does not clear the conscience or alleviate the responsibility.

There is even a very sophisticated means of ignoring those situations, such as remitting to the State the sole responsibility to find a solution, a remedy or even the provision of an opportunity.

This is a type of solidarity that can ease our worries, but does not dignify us as persons, as human beings, as the determined citizens we want to be.

For this and for many other reasons voluntary work represents, above all, an expression of the dignity of civilization. And for these same reasons we should pay tribute and show recognition to the thousands of Portuguese who are contributing in so many diversified ways to that fight.

Unfortunately, Portugal has not yet achieved the level of civic participation and of voluntary work that I would like to see in my country. We are still traipsing between the traditional private charity and public state protectionism.

But I have hopes that the responsible role of the citizen who believes in solidarity will become a very important pawn in our collective being.

Fortunately there are now many thousands of Portuguese who daily take up responsibilities in solidarity by participating in voluntary organizations.

Were it not for the inestimable activity of these citizens it would be difficult to imagine what sort of situation would be lived by other thousands of Portuguese stamped by poverty and exclusion, by sickness and misfortune, by the lack of capacity to overcome difficulties or to recover a dignity so often lost in paths without return.

My presence here today to witness the conclusions of this conference is just to pay tribute and to show recognition for the relevance I attribute to the efforts of all those voluntary workers who are the true custodians of an inestimable value of any social organization: solidarity.

I appreciate your work, your commitment, your tenacity.

I know that your example is an enormous contribution towards the movement of Portuguese voluntary work, in order that it reaches the level that social issues demand.

For this reason also I know we can count on you.

My best thanks to you all.

Maria Cavaco Silva