On May 19 another trial in took place in Kalamata representing the systematic attacks on people’s freedom by the Greek state.
In an unprecedented move, Greek authorities have charged a refugee with the drowning of his 6-year-old son during a shipwreck. On 18 May 2022, he will be on trial in Samos together with his co-passenger, who is facing life imprisonment for steering the boat. Seventy organizations across Europe call for the charges against the #Samos2 to be dropped.
The human rights groups Aegean Migrant Solidarity, borderline-europe e.V. and the European Democratic Lawyers will monitor the trial. Twitter: @BorderlineEurop; #Samos2
On 05 May, the trial against the Paros3, Kheiraldin, Abdallah and Mohamad, took place on the Greek island of Syros. Both the prosecution and the judges acknowledged that the three defendants were not the smugglers and had not acted for profit, nor were they to blame for the 18 lost lives. Despite this, the three fathers were nevertheless convicted of “facilitating unauthorized entry,” resulting in a sentence of 187 years for the “captain” and 126 years for each of the two “assistants.”
Not only are migrants subject to the dangers of fleeing across the ocean in unsafe vessels, they also face the risk of being pushed back into the open waters by Greek authorities.
After an interruption of their trial on March 18, Amir and Razuli will be swallowd back into the prison system in an arbritary show of force.
Greek Minister of Migration opens doors to “real refugees,” while people coming from Middle East and Africa have been warehoused and criminalized for years.
The chain of injustice that Amir and Razuli were confronted with over the last years is continued: arbitrarily arrested, detained, and convicted without any evidence, and now their appeal trial is interrupted.
The two men from Afghanistan were seeking safety in Europe, but were instead arbitrarily convicted to 50 years imprisonment.
Join the Aegean Migrant Solidarity team in conversation with the Legal Centre Lesvos, which has been documenting pushbacks in the Aegean sea and offering legal support to the victims of this practice.
The Greek government celebrates its management of the migration crisis, leaving atrocious human rights violations in its wake.