Athens, 17 March 2023 To: ● ● ● ● ●
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights UN Special Rapporteur on the rights of migrants UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human right defenders Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights European Commission – Commissioner for Home Affairs
Subject: Joint letter by GCR & HLHR on irregular forced returns (pushbacks), criminalisation and the Rule of Law in Greece Your excellences, With full respect to your duties and roles, we reach out to raise the alarm over the ongoing deterioration of the Rule of Law in Greece, in this case, with regards to the targeting, intimidation and even criminal persecution of civil society organisations (CSOs) working in the field of migration and asylum, and particularly those actively challenging human right violations at the Greek borders. 1. The signatory parties to this letter are two of the oldest and most well established civil society organisations in Greece: 2. The Hellenic League for Human Rights (HLHR) is the oldest CSO in the field of human rights in the country. It was initially established in 1936, and was reinstituted in 1953, after being dissolved by the 4th of August (1936) dictatorship. It was again dissolved by the 1967 dictatorship and reinstituted in 1974. It has been a permanent member of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), which it has represented in Greece since its establishment and, as per its mandate, is active in the field of dissemination, defense and development of principles that recognise the rights and freedoms of people in society, working on a broad field of subjects, amongst which migration and asylum in Greece and the EU, the rights of minorities, racist violence, hate speech, freedom of expressions, police arbitrariness and Justice. 3. The Greek Council for Refugees (GCR), is a non-governmental organisation, which has been active since 1989 in the field of asylum and human rights in Greece. Amongst others, GCR has Consultative Status in the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) of the UN since 2001; is an operative partner of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR); a member of the Executive Committee of the European Council on Refugees and Exiles (ECRE) since 1991; a member of the Separated Children in Europe Program (SCEP) and participates in the Greek National Committee for Human Rights (EEDA) since 1999. Since March 2022 it has represented before the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) close to 500 refugees, including many children, that were requesting to be granted humanitarian assistance and access to the asylum procedure in Greece, many of who have claimed being victims of even multiple incidents of irregular forced returns by the Greek authorities. Irregular forced returns (pushbacks) 4. Practices of irregular forced returns (henceforth “pushbacks”) by the Greek authorities, particularly at the