CIVICUS discusses Greece’s new migration and asylum policies with Minos Mouzourakis, a lawyer and Legal and Advocacy Officer with Refugee Support Aegean, a leading civil society organisation (CSO) that provides free legal aid to refugees and asylum seekers in Greece.
Greece’s new policies represent a dramatic escalation in criminalising migration. Authorities have introduced harsh prison sentences for rejected asylum seekers, suspended asylum rights for sea arrivals from Africa and launched an unprecedented attack on CSOs that defend migrants’ rights. These measures, which violate international law, risk setting a dangerous precedent in Europe.