Greece: Lives at risk as refugees pushed back to Turkey, Amnesty warns in new report

 

The report also highlights the dangers refugees and migrants face trying to cross from Turkey to the Greek islands, and explores the appalling detention conditions those who do make it are often held in.

 

Since March, Amnesty International has spoken to nearly 30 people in Greece and Turkey who, in at least 39 separate instances, have been stopped trying to cross the Aegean or the northern land border between the two countries along the river Evros. 

 

Almost all of them described how they had experienced or witnessed violence and/or other ill-treatment by the Greek authorities. Many said guards had taken their belongings, including money, family photos and heirlooms, and in some cases thrown them into the sea.

 

Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for Europe and Central Asia Jezerca Tigani said:

 

“What’s happening along the Greek border does not just shame Greece. It shames the European Union as a whole.

 

“The number of push back stories we collected is extremely alarming. It suggests that the Greek authorities are employing this practice on a regular basis, despite the fact that it is unlawful. And it is also extremely dangerous - to the point where it puts people’s lives seriously at risk.”

 

Testimonies collected by Amnesty point to the blatant disregard for human life shown by the Greek coastguard during operations carried out in the Aegean Sea. Thirteen of the 14 interviewees who described being returned to Turkey said how their inflatable boats were rammed, knifed, or nearly capsized while they were being towed or circled by a Greek coastguard boat. They said their boats’ engines were disabled and their oars removed, then they were just left in the middle of the sea. Life-endangering practices were also reported by people caught after crossing the river Evros.

 

The route across the Aegean has become more popular since last year when authorities built a 10.5 kilometre fence and deployed nearly 2,000 new border guards along the border at the river Evros. But it is a dangerous one. As well as the threat of push backs, since August 2012 more than 100 people – including women and Children's rights and mostly Syrians and Afghans - have drowned trying to reach Greece.

 

Those who do make it to Greece are routinely detained in dark, dirty cells for long periods. Many of the people Amnesty spoke to had spent nearly nine months behind bars. Health problems are rife.

 

Jezerca Tigani said:

 

“The conditions refugees and migrants are being held in are often appalling.  In fact, when we visited people in those cells it was difficult to remember we were actually in the EU. Many of them are fleeing conflict, poverty and hunger but too often they are being held in dark, dirty, damp cells, with limited access to fresh air and not enough food.

 

“Some detainees told us they had to call the police when they needed to use the toilet as there were no toilets in their cells. They said their calls were often not answered for hours so they had to urinate in bottles. Others said their bedding had not been washed for months, and that they had limited access to soap, shampoo or sanitary towels.”

 

“It is obviously Greece’s prerogative to control its borders, but not at the expense of the human rights of those trying to reach safety, or looking for a better life, in Europe. These are difficult times in Greece, and for millions across Europe, but there is no excuse for how refugees and migrants are being treated. The EU must act now to stop these human rights violations at its borders.”