Feature Αρχεία

06 / 07 / 2022

No closer to heaven — transgender asylum-seekers in Greece

For many transgender asylum-seekers, their arrival in Greece only drags them deeper into misery.

21 / 06 / 2022

Facing 10 years in prison for an act of desperation

A year and a half ago, a young pregnant woman from Afghanistan, living at the Mavrovouni camp on Lesvos, attempted suicide by setting fire to her tent. On June 22, 2022, she stands trial, accused of arson with intent.

16 / 06 / 2022

Serbia: Green waves washing over polluted land

Citizens’ growing concern fueled by industrial investments and the urgent need to solve environmental issues has resulted in the election of Serbia’s first Green Party to parliament.

19 / 04 / 2022

European Court decision finds 2016 collective pushbacks “lawful”

On April 5, the European Court of Human Rights handed down a negative judgement on claims regarding the alleged pushback of approximately 1,500 asylum seekers into Greece via North Macedonia in 2016. ECHR acknowledged their violent persecution, but believed the applicants could have applied for asylum by other legal means ― although there weren’t any.

22 / 03 / 2022

Ukraine war: the “real” refugees and the lies of the Greek government

Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Greek government ministers and MPs have spread false claims about refugees and international law. While experts, the UNHCR, and EU data refute their claims and more allegations are reported regarding Greece’s illegal pushbacks of asylum seekers.

10 / 03 / 2022

Masafarhána: Inside the invisible refugee houses in Athens

In Athens, refugees pay to live in small apartments which accommodate up to 22 people. They often fall victim to exploitation by their compatriots. But sometimes the masafarhánas offer them the forgotten feeling of home.

28 / 01 / 2022

Unaccompanied minors: The fear of adulthood

Like most teenagers in Europe, they should be waiting for their 18th birthday with excitement and impatience. But for the thousands of asylum seekers who are unaccompanied minors, the day they turn 18 – when they go from being minors in need of protection to being regarded as "men" and even "foreigners" – is a day accompanied by anxiety about what tomorrow might bring and by the fear of deportation.

12 / 11 / 2021

Building economies within walls

Ritsona is the largest refugee camp on Greece’s mainland. Excluded from the region’s social and economic network long before the pandemic, the camp gradually acquired its own life. Today, with new surveillance technologies being installed at the camp, there are growing fears that the camp community will become completely isolated.

25 / 10 / 2021

Young Roma shot dead by Greek police. Yet another case of police impunity? — Part 1

After a car chase, Greek police shot and killed a young Roma man. The incident bears a striking resemblance to another case of excessive and unwarranted use of force by Greek law enforcement − in which Greece was convicted by the European Court of Justice in 2004. The Makaratzis case was the main lawsuit in a group of cases brought to the European Court of Human Rights regarding excessive use of force by Greek law enforcement and the failure of both disciplinary and judicial action to bring an end to such incidents. The Council of Europe continues to urge Greece to take action to address police violence.

19 / 10 / 2021

Congolese minor suing Frontex: “I thought that the law is upheld in Europe”

A.N., a young woman from Burundi, was recently granted asylum in Greece. However, her struggle continues. She is suing Frontex, for the first time in the history of the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, for complicity in two pushback incidents that she claims preceded her asylum. The case is co-signed by an unaccompanied minor from the Democratic Republic of the Congo – who claims that he has been pushed backed to Turkey three times, where he currently remains.

30 / 08 / 2021

The protectors of refugee children

They are probably the first and only doctors to examine young refugees who arrive in Athens. The pediatricians Stavroula Dikalioti and Smaragda Papachristidou - due to their efforts and personal interest - have managed to facilitate the refugees’ access to public health, which is provided at no cost, but remains a complicated maze to navigate.

19 / 08 / 2021

There is no escape from violence for LGBTQI+ asylum seekers

They flee their countries because of violence and persecution. Once in Europe, they face discrimination again. “We have been repeating that for years: the camps are not a safe place for LGBTQI+ asylum seekers.”