Catherine Vuylsteke

BRUSSELS - Journalist and writer Catherine Vuylsteke chronicled the life stories of Mar Maremoto, Ann Telnaes, Rachita Taneja, Doaa El-Adl, Victoria Lomasko and Amany Al-Ali, six women cartoonists from Mexico, the U.S., India, Egypt, Russia and Syria to whom the documentary series Draw for Change, recently awarded at Cannes, is dedicated. They come from very diverse worlds and belong to different generations: the oldest was born when John F. Kennedy won the election, the youngest saw the light of day nearly 35 years later.

BRUSSELS/DAKAR - In 2012, 19-year-old Mamadou was one of the 5742 men, women and children expelled from Belgium. They ended up in the oblivion of public opinion. No news, good news. And if we may believe the responsible Secretary of State for migration Maggie De Block, the Belgian return policy is a huge success.

Stories in the media on Scott Manyo or the dutch boy Mauro brought the issue of unaccompanied minors to the attention of the general public. But the boys and girls that end up here all alone, are rarely more than figures in one or the other report.

BELGIUM - Eight underage asylum seekers were followed by Catherine Vuylsteke for one year. The Nadaar collective and three guest photographers each portrayed one of the youngsters.

In Silent Stories Hanne Phlypo and Catherine Vuysteke follow two men and two women from Algeria, Senegal, Iraq and Guinea whose sexual orientation forced them to leave their country - wether they were bisexual, homosexual, lesbian or transsexual. Three of them are rebuilding their lives in Belgium, for the fourth, the Iraq transsexual Sarah, long years of waiting have finally resulted in political asylum and the prospect of a gender operation.