Intervention by Natacha Mugisi Tchitembo during the Action and Contemplation weekend organised by House of Compassion at the Rock-in-Squat.

Dear members of House of Compassion,
Dear participants,
Dear brothers and sisters,
I thank you for the invitation extended to me today.
Your institution bears a powerful name: House of Compassion,
A house, and a compassion.
Two words which, for us, women without papers, are not concepts but vital needs.

In the Christian tradition, compassion is not an emotion; it is a responsibility.
Today, I come to speak to you on behalf of the Committee of Women without Papers, of which I am one of the spokespersons,
On behalf of the collective The Echo of the Voice, which I founded,
On behalf of the occupation The Divine Grace, of which I am the initiator and coordinator,
And on behalf of all those who are not seen, but whom God has never ceased to see.

The lived reality of women without papers:
A question of human dignity
The Church reminds us that
every person is created in the image of God.
And yet, in our societies,
women and children live without recognition,
without security,
without rights.

To be a woman without papers
is to live in daily fear:
fear of controls,
fear of denunciation,
fear of deportation.

Socially,
we often work in essential
but invisible sectors:
care, cleaning, support.

Culturally,
we are reduced to silence.
Our voices are not considered legitimate.

Politically,
we are absent from decision-making spaces,
even though decisions affect us directly.

This reality is not only social.
It is moral.
It is spiritual.

Speech as a path to liberation
In the Bible,
God always begins by hearing the cry.
“I have seen the misery of my people,
I have heard their cry.”
(Exodus 3:7)

We too cried out.
But for a long time, no one listened.
That is why we chose to speak collectively.
Speech became for us an act of liberation,
an act of faith,
an act of non-violent resistance.

The Invisibles:
When singing becomes prayer and protest
This is how the Committee’s choir was born:
The Invisibles

In the Christian tradition,
singing is a prayer.
But it is also a proclamation.
Our songs are contemporary psalms.
They speak of exile,
of waiting,
of hope.

When we sing in public space, we do what the prophets did: we remind society of its responsibilities.

Art and conscience: the undocumented candidacy
Our path crossed that of the artist Anna Rispoli.
With her,
we took part in a powerful action:
the symbolic candidacy
of a woman without papers,
a role I embodied,
“The mayor of the twentieth commune” during the municipal elections.

This action raised a deeply ethical question:
Can we speak of justice when part of the population has no political voice?

This artistic gesture opened a space for reflection,
not against institutions,
but to awaken consciences.

We also wrote a memorandum in which you can find our various demands.

A home for women and children: The Divine Grace
In my Christian tradition,
the home is a sacred place.

Faced with the precariousness of the women of the Committee
and their children,
the idea was born to create a space of welcome, safety, and rebuilding.
This is how The Divine Grace came into being.

This name expresses our deep conviction:
dignity is not earned,
it is given by God.

The Echo of the Voice: Making the Invisible resonate within institutions
The collective The Echo of the Voice was created so that our words would not remain confined.
An echo
is a voice that passes through walls.

In this spirit, we met
seven mayors,
not in a logic of confrontation,
but of responsible dialogue.

We presented them with a clear project:
– the need for a building,
– a dignified place,
– a space of shared humanity.

Conclusion
A call to active compassion
I will end with a call.
Compassion is not only a feeling.
It is a commitment.

Today,
we are not asking the Church to speak in our place.
We are asking it to walk with us.

Because every invisible woman is a sister.
Because every child without safety is a child of God.

We are here.
We exist.
And we will continue to make the echo of the voice heard.

Thank you.

Photo of the choir of the Committee of Women without Papers during the closing of the “Action and Contemplation” reflection days organised by House of Compassion on 9 and 10 January 2026 at Rock-in-Squat.

13 November 2025 – Palace of Justice – Speech by Eva

Good morning everyone. Thank you for being here, so early, and in the cold. I am Eva from Amnesty, and years ago I myself came to Belgium as a refugee, seeking safety. Despite this chilly morning, I mainly feel the warmth of your presence and solidarity.

Today I stand here not alone, but as part of something bigger: a community that refuses to forget what humanity means. We are here with Vluchtelingenwerk Vlaanderen, Amnesty International, Ciré, BelRefugees and House of Compassion, and with many concerned citizens.

Why are we here at the Palace of Justice, with our sleeping bags in hand? To take action for dignified reception. Because nearly 1,800 people seeking protection today literally have to sleep on the street. Because even families with children are being left out in the cold by the authorities.

We roll out our sleeping bags on the pavement of the Palace of Justice to send a silent but powerful signal to our government. To show: this is what happens when the law no longer has space. Together we show that we do not agree with a policy that leaves people on the run to sleep outside in wind and rain. Because reception is not a favor, it is a right.

What does it mean to receive reception? Reception is more than a place to sleep: it is a first step towards rest, safety, and stability. Those who do not receive reception lose more than a bed and basic services such as food and healthcare. That person loses the chance to come back to life. Without a safe place, only survival remains, and people are forced to sleep under bridges, in stations, in squats. That means insecurity, health problems and despair. And all this in a city that closes its eyes, in the heart of Europe.

What was once a temporary shortage, our government has allowed to grow into a degrading policy. The situation threatens to worsen this winter. In Brussels, the annual winter plan will be activated on 15 November. But just as temperatures are dropping, the federal government has cut funding for winter reception.

While civil society organizations are at breaking point, the government refuses to invest in structural solutions. That is a political choice. And political choices can change. That is why I now address our government directly with three demands:

1. Reception for everyone: everyone must have a roof over their head this winter.
2. Restoration of budgets for winter reception: give cities and organizations the means to protect lives. Especially in cities like Brussels and Ghent, local reception must be sufficiently supported.
3. Respect for the law: more than 10,000 times already, judges in Belgium have ordered the government to respect the right to reception. Those entitled to it must actually receive it.

Today we symbolically roll out our sleeping bags to show what happens when the government lays down its responsibility. But we refuse to accept that this becomes the new normal. We are here to remind of laws that already exist, of rights that apply to everyone. Law only has meaning if it applies to everyone. And everyone deserves dignified reception.

Thanks to everyone who is here today: citizens, lawyers, field workers, people with a refugee story. You are the proof that solidarity is alive in our country. Together we demand that Belgium leaves no one out in the cold.

Before I hand over the floor, I suggest we wake Brussels up together with our message. Let us chant loud and clear! What do we want? RECEPTION! When? NOW!

Thank you!

Speech by Eva Davidova, spokesperson Amnesty International Flanders and board member Vluchtelingenwerk Vlaanderen

Additional Information

The action on 13 November 2025 at the Palace of Justice in Brussels is the first of a series of actions that civil society will organize this autumn:

• On 14 November, lawyers and magistrates will take action at the Palace of Justice because “Justice is suffocating”.
• On 17 November, Samusocial and Ligue des Familles will launch a campaign: Jamais un enfant dans la rue (“Never a child in the street”).
• On 5 December, on the eve of Saint Nicholas, several volunteers will take action in their municipality with the message: #NoChildrenOnTheStreet.

Civil society partners: collaboration between Vluchtelingenwerk Vlaanderen, Amnesty International, Ciré, BelRefugees and House of Compassion. With the support of organizations such as Doctors of the World and La Ligue.