On 20 January 2014, 11 women and children drowned when they tried to cross from Turkey to Greece in a boat. There were four families in the boat. A total of 27 people. As they neared the Greek coast, the coast guard arrived. They towed the boat back towards Turkey, the survivors say. Afghan Ahsanulla Safi was on board the boat with her spouse and four children. He has previously told news about what happened: – The coupling smoked and there was a hole in the boat. The Coast Guard reattached the rope. We screamed that the boat was taking on water, but they didn’t listen to us, Safi said. Says the border guard pushed them away – Only when we threw things at their engine did they stop the boat. We clung to their boat, but they pushed us away. Eventually we were rescued. But those who remained in the cabin, nine children and three women, drowned when the boat sank, he continued. The spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees was clear in his speech after the shipwreck: – We must stop protecting borders and rather protect people’s lives, said Ketty Kehayioylou to Sveriges Radio. – Now there must be pressure on the Greek authorities. Then a greater joint European responsibility must be taken to help those who come, says Jon Ole Martinsen to news. He is a senior advisor for the Norwegian Organization for Asylum Seekers (Noas) and has worked on this case because Safi eventually came to Norway. Greece convicted on several counts Safi is one of several who brought the case before the Human Rights Court in Strasbourg. In the judgment, it is established that the Greek coastguard contributed to the capsizing of the boat with the 27. The judgment states that the Greek coast guard did not do enough to save those who perished. Greece was also convicted because it “did not carry out a thorough and effective investigation to shed light on the circumstances that caused the boat to sink”. Greece was fined 330,000 euros, just under NOK 3.4 million. – The judgment is clear and unambiguous. Here, instead of saving lives, the Greek authorities have actually put lives at risk, says Jon Ole Martinsen. The verdict was handed down in July. At the beginning of October, the appeal deadline expired. Since Greece did not appeal, the judgment is now final. The court will deal with several cases The Greek authorities claim that the Coast Guard tried to pull the boat ashore. They say it’s not true, what the survivors say Aid organizations have repeatedly accused the Greek coast guard of forcing boats with refugees and migrants back into Turkish waters, so-called “pushbacks”. In the judgment from Strasbourg, it is pointed out that the Greek authorities have not done enough to find out what happened, when 11 people drowned. – In the judgment, it is also pointed out that the Greek boat had no rescue equipment on board. Everything indicates that this was a “pushback”, says Martinsen. The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg has several similar cases pending, reports the European Council for Refugees. A video filmed by the Turkish coast guard in December 2020 shows the Greek coast guard sending refugees into the neighboring country. A light boat tows a life raft out into open water. Then the line is cut and the life raft is left to drift against the elements. Denies “pushbacks” news has been in contact with Greece’s embassy in Oslo and asked why the Greek authorities have chosen not to appeal the verdict. The answer from Ambassador Anna Korka is that it is not a normal procedure in cases in the European Court of Human Rights. And it is only relevant if the case raises a serious question that affects the interpretation or application of the convention or protocols. – In other words, referring a case to the Human Rights Court’s large chamber is a procedure that is only followed in exceptional cases, and by no means a normal practice, writes Ambassador Anna Korka to news. Regarding the claim from several human rights organizations that the Greeks are illegally forcing migrants and refugees back, i.e. obviously “pushback”, the ambassador has previously stated to TV 2 that pushbacks are illegal and not something Greece does. In the email to news, the ambassador points out that although the Norwegian Organization for Asylum Seekers believes that the judgment that came this summer is clear evidence that Hella is engaging in pushback, this expression is not used anywhere in the judgment. She also points out that sufficient evidence has not been found to establish beyond any reasonable doubt that the applicants were the subject of an attempt to return them to Turkey. Jon Ole Martinsen is a senior advisor for the Norwegian Organization for Asylum Seekers (Noas). He believes that even if the judgment in the human rights court does not use the word “pushback”, that is what they believe has happened when you look at the basis for the judgment. Photo: Noas – Frontex closed its eyes It is not only the judges in Strasbourg and aid organizations who criticize the practice. The EU is also critical of what is taking place in Greek waters. The Union’s own investigators have looked at the surveillance of the border agency Frontex. In a report that came out on Thursday, it is stated that the employees have turned a blind eye to the practice of pushing refugees back. The report was written by the EU’s anti-corruption agency OLAF. It concludes that the Greeks’ illegal forced return of migrants and refugees violated their fundamental rights. In one case, Frontex redeployed one of its planes “to avoid witnessing episodes in the Aegean”. The report also shows that Frontex provided false information to EU institutions, including members of the EU Parliament and the European Commission. A frontex plane on patrol. In one case, planes are said to have been repositioned to avoid being witnessed. Photo: Thanassis Stavrakis / AP Still coming to Europe The UN has demanded that the Greek authorities investigate several incidents in which Greek border guards have forcibly refused refugees access to safety on Greek soil. And has warned several times about violations of human rights at European border crossings. In recent months, the world’s eyes, and not least the media’s, have been focused on Ukraine and the war there. In its shadow, refugees and immigrants have continued to come to Europe. According to NGOs, almost 150,000 people have come to the Greek islands during the last almost six years. Some have become stuck on the islands. Others have been sent on to European countries or to reception on the Greek mainland. In the same period, over 250,000 are said to have been sent back to Turkey. An overcrowded boat off the Greek island of Kos. Photo: YANNIS BEHRAKIS / Reuters Agreement on exchange is dead Many of the returns were part of a 2015 agreement between the two neighboring countries and the EU. According to the agreement, migrants and refugees who came to Greece were to be sent back to Turkey. In return, the EU would accept Syrian quota refugees from camps in Turkey. Both the UN and aid organizations criticized the agreement when it was concluded. They believed it was in violation of international conventions. The agreement has since been declared dead, both from the Turkish and Greek sides. Tommy Olsen in the organization Aegan Boat Report says there has been a sharp increase in the number of people trying to cross the sea from Turkey to Greece. The organization monitors and writes about people fleeing across the sea. They also collect figures from aid organizations and the authorities in the two countries. Olsen believes that it has become more and more common for the Greek coast guard to send migrants back. Often in a way that puts their lives in danger. These operations have become common and more violent, he says. – There is no longer any doubt that the Greek authorities are responsible. But as long as the EU does not react to this, nothing will change, says Olsen.
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Failed to help – Greece sentenced by the court in Strasbourg – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
