The Montreal Conference > Special Events

On the eve of the Montreal Conference on Intellectual Disability, and as part of the program for the invited participants to the conference, international visitors had the occasion to meet representatives of the Quebec public health system, as well as parents, from the Lisette-Dupras and West Montreal Readaptation centres. These meetings were held on October 4 th , 2004, prior to a reception put on by the Mayor of Montreal, M. Gerald Tremblay, at City Hall.

The Conference also organized two special evening events.

The first evening event was a tribute to Bengt Nirje, the father of normalization, to salute his fifty years of leadership in the field of intellectual disability. Mr. Nirje is a Swedish personality internationally known for his important contribution to the field of disabilities. He is considered by most as the author of the first understanding definition of the Principle of standardization and has received many prices and distinctions recognizing his numerous efforts made in order to assure the full integration and social inclusion of persons with intellectual disabilities. The evening featured Miss Lisa Walsh who gave a short concert from her repertoire of jazz standards based upon her work at the Concordia Creative Arts Centre.

The second evening featured an address from the Quebec Minister of Health & Social Services, M. Philippe Couillard, who announced the support of his Ministry for the Montreal Declaration as well as its assistance in the diffusion of this document throughout the hemisphere. This support for the Montreal Declaration was restated by Dr Benedetto Saraceno, head of the department for Mental Health and substance abuse of the World Health Organization, who addressed the conference participants on the importance for WHO of fundamental rights for persons with an intellectual disability.