2023-05-26 13:58:00
”JI’m more of a voluble, demonstrative person. But I did not know how to react when I learned of his release. I was in shock, like pinned to the ground “admits Denis Meyers when commenting on this news” expected as much as unexpected”.
The artist experienced the same youth in Tournai as Olivier Vandecasteele, at the college of the City of Five Bell Towers and with the scouts. “When I found out what had happened to her, I contacted her sisters and did what I might.”, he explained to our editorial staff in April.
In recent weeks, he has produced a fresco in Namur then a second in Brussels, this one participatory. Spray paint in hand, he further detailed: “In my own way, I ask people to take an interest in his cause, to sign the petition, to seek information and to remember him.”
No one has forgotten Olivier Vandecasteele, finally free following 456 days of captivity. “We have been waiting for his return for so long that this happy ending and the joy of finding him should not distract us from reality. Have our political representatives and diplomats acted correctly? Couldn’t they have mobilized earlier to rescue him from his executioners more quickly? The family reunion will be beautiful and intense. But they must precede a debate that must be held. Yes, Olivier is free. Yes, it’s a day of celebration. But there are still other humanitarians imprisoned or held hostage around the world. We must continue to act to free them and ensure that those who are still in countries at risk are protected. Personally, I will not throw flowers at Belgian politicians”, insiste Denis Meyers.
When he finds his childhood friend, what will be his first words? “I think it will be more like tears”, confides the artist. “I will say welcome and congratulations. Congratulations because he had the mental strength to last for more than a year in atrocious conditions, where ordinary mortals would probably not have survived. But above all, let him savor his reunion with his family because there is nothing more precious. Let him rebuild himself, physically and morally”, concludes Denis Meyers. The words love, respect, courage, fighter, strength and solidarity inscribed on the Brussels fresco resonate even stronger today, May 26, 2023. Day of Olivier Vandecasteele’s return to Belgium…
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