The former president, Mrs Mary Robinson, has been given the special prize at the 1997 People of the Year Awards. She was presented with the award by the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, at a reception in Dublin last night.
Mrs Robinson was cited for "her outstanding performance in the execution of her duties both at home and abroad". The award was "a tribute to the sense of pride she brought to us as a nation and a recognition of the high regard the Irish people have for her," said Mr Frank Flannery, the chief executive officer of the REHAB Foundation, sponsors of the annual event.
Mr Flannery said Mrs Robinson had kept her promise as president to be "a voice for the voiceless", giving us a new sense of what it meant to be Irish.
"And while maintaining the dignity of the Presidency, she showed solidarity with marginalised and excluded people in Ireland, and as far away as Somalia".
Speaking before the presentation, Mrs Robinson said the awards were "very special" to her, particularly insofar as they recognised the talents of people who had overcome disabilities in their lives - some of whom she had met during her term as president.
The winners also included Ms Jane O'Brien, the chairwoman of Positive Action, who was recognised for her work on behalf of women infected with hepatitis C as a result of contaminated blood products from the Blood Transfusion Service Board.
Ms O'Brien said she was accepting the award for the late Mrs Bridget McCole and all the women who had fought for justice for those infected by contaminated blood products.
The other award winners were: Mr Michael Martin, a 24-year-old with Down's Syndrome who has raised £36,000 for charity; Ms Lainey Keogh, for her contribution to Irish fashion; Mr Micheal O Muircheartaigh, for his GAA commentaries and promotion of Irish language and culture; Mr Seamus Stack, a Cork farmer, for his role in the economic regeneration of his area; Mr John Hunt, for his work with Limerick's Hunt Museum; and Ms Julia Windle, for "tireless campaigning" in the cause of muscular dystrophy.
Speaking to reporters, Mrs Robinson sent her best wishes to Mrs Mary McAleese, who today formally succeeds her as President. "I wish Mary and her husband all the enrichment and the sense of honour and privilege that I felt on the day I became president," she said.
