– I have become much more cautious about what I dare to do for the refugees now, says Katrin Glatz Brubakk. For several years, she has helped boat refugees who have arrived in rafts to the Greek island of Lesvos. Now she is afraid of being arrested for the same work. Katrin Glatz Brubakk and a colleague train Syrian refugees on the beach. Photo: Private trial starts on Friday A trial starts on Friday against 24 people the Greek authorities believe have helped people smugglers land Syrian refugees. They are accused of participation in criminal networks, human trafficking and espionage. Several of them have been accused of this ever since 2018. Sean Binderm is one of the aid workers accused of assisting human traffickers. The trial will take place in the town of Mytilene on the northeastern island of Lesvos. Photo: Panagiotis Balaskas / AP Brubakk believes the accusations are absurd. – I have stood on the beaches of Lesvos with several of them. What they have actually done is save refugees from drowning, giving them warm blankets, water and food when they came ashore. Help that we don’t normally see as criminal, but rather absolutely necessary. “If helping is criminal, we are all criminals” reads a banner in front of the court building where the trial will take place. Photo: Panagiotis Balaskas / AP Brubakk is known here at home as the initiator of the “Moria movement – for children on the run”. She has brought the suffering of children on the run to light. The group was behind the mobilization of people from Finnmark to Lindesnes, which helped to collect 7,500 pairs of shoes for the children in Moria in 2020. – What do the defendants risk? These are very serious charges. It is tragic for the individual accused, but it is also an attack on all of us who want to help people who need it. Brubakk and a Syrian child from one of the many rafts arriving on Lesvos. Photo: Privat Brubakk believes that the Greek authorities’ prosecution of aid workers weighs on her when she is out in the field: – If I am driving along the beach and see that a boat is coming ashore, then I have to consider; shall I now do what instinct tells me; to hand out water, give food, give a blanket to cold children? Should I do it when the risk is 25 years in prison? Not everyone follows the law The Greek ambassador to Norway, Anna Korka, will not comment on the specific trial on Lesvos. She believes, however, that it is important that the Greek authorities pursue offenses also among those who believe they are aid workers. Anna Korka, the Greek ambassador to Norway, is happy for the many aid workers who assist refugees, but a few of them break the law, she says. Photo: The Greek Embassy – The vast majority of aid workers do an important job that the Greek authorities greatly appreciate. I would especially like to thank the Norwegian Refugee Council and Norwegian doctors. – But there have been situations where, for example, people on land have notified people smugglers where our coast guard has been. This has helped the people smugglers to get ashore with rafts, without the Greek authorities being able to control it. This is prohibited and punishable. Korka says Greece practices the same rules as Norway when it comes to crossing the border. – Everyone who crosses the Norwegian border must also be able to be checked and identify themselves. A Greek fisherman helps Syrian refugees ashore on Lesvos in October 2015. Photo: Giorgos Moutafis / Reuters – Do you understand Brubakk’s concern about being arrested for ordinary aid work? – I understand her frustration over this, but no one has so far been punished for something like this in Greece. Korka also emphasizes that Greece is a state governed by the rule of law. – The authority must present evidence of an offence. Everyone who is accused in this and other court cases against aid workers and volunteers has the right to a lawyer, and the right to appeal. In the last resort, they can appeal to the European Court of Human Rights.
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Aid workers are accused of human trafficking – news Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country
