Amnesty International’s annual report flags major concerns in Greece: Public health, police conduct, refugee rights

Amnesty International’s latest annual report on the world's state of human rights places a harsh spotlight on Greece. The collapse of the country’s public health system, widespread allegations of police violence, and the mistreatment of refugees and asylum seekers dominate the findings. The report also draws attention to the femicide of Kyriaki Griva outside a police station, lawsuits against journalists, the legalisation of same-sex marriage, and efforts to criminalise human rights advocacy.
An appeals court upheld a guilty verdict against two men for the death of LGBTI activist Zak Kostopoulos. Reports of abuses against migrants and refugees at borders continued, and asylum seekers in the Samos reception centre were held in conditions of unlawful detention. Human rights defenders continued to face criminalization for their work with refugees and migrants. Allegations of unnecessary and excessive use of force in the policing of demonstrations persisted. Concerns were raised over an investigation which found no links between the unlawful use of spyware and state ministries or agencies. In a milestone step, Greece legalized same-sex marriage. Health workers continued to report ongoing and significant gaps in Greeces national health system.
A healthcare system in crisis
“Health workers and experts continued to report ongoing and significant gaps in Greece’s national health system. These included staff shortages, long working hours, difficulty in taking leave, and clinics at risk of closure or operating at reduced capacity due to lack of staff and/or equipment.”
Refugees and asylum seekers
Amnesty International highlights Greece’s ongoing harsh policies toward refugees.
“Deadly shipwrecks continued, as did reports of human rights violations, including summary unlawful returns by Greek law enforcement officers, against racialized asylum seekers and migrants at borders.”
“In January, ruling in a case from 2014 in which the coastguard fired shots towards a boat during an interception at sea, hitting a Syrian man who later died 3 the European Court of Human Rights found Greece in violation of the right to life, both regarding the investigation of the incident and the use of lethal force.”
“Despite the ruling, officials’ use of firearms during border control operations remained of concern. In July a man died after the coastguard fired shots at a boat during a pursuit operation off Symi.”
Regarding the June 2023 Pylos shipwreck, which claimed over 600 lives, Amnesty reported:
“In December the preliminary domestic investigation into the actions of the authorities in the June 2023 Pylos shipwreck 3 in which over 600 people died 3 was finally completed. Survivors had claimed that the Greek coastguard was responsible for the incident. NGOs representing survivors and victims’ families criticized the prosecution’s failure to summon to provide written explanations those authorities responsible for coordinating the search and rescue operation and their superiors. In May, in separate proceedings which raised fair trial concerns, nine survivors were acquitted of charges, including causing the shipwreck.”
Detention conditions in refugee centres were also under scrutiny. Amnesty reported discriminatory restrictions on freedom, lack of running water, and inadequate access to healthcare in facilities.
“Asylum seekers living in the EU-funded Closed Controlled Access Centre (CCAC) on the island of Samos, mostly racialized individuals, were routinely subjected to “restrictions of freedom” amounting to unlawful detention. There were also shortcomings in the provision of basic services in the CCAC, including running water and healthcare. Those deprived of their liberty may have experienced inhuman and degrading detention conditions, especially during times of overcrowding.
Similar concerns relating to other CCACs were made public by the Council of Europe’s anti-torture committee (CPT) in July, following their 2023 visit.
The system of containment implemented on Samos and other CCACs disproportionately affected racialized people and furthered the racialized exclusion of migrants and refugees.”
The report also noted the termination of both the refugee housing programme and financial assistance – funded by the EU and protected under international law.
“In October the Court of Justice of the EU ruled on a case concerning the readmissions of asylum seekers from Greece to Türkiye under the 2014 EU-Türkiye readmission agreement, which Türkiye had suspended since March 2020. The court found that if the country of return did not ensure readmission, asylum applications could not be rejected as inadmissible under the “safe third country” rule.
There were negative developments in access by asylum seekers and refugees to social and economic support. The Helios programme, run by the International Organization for Migration with funding from the Greek authorities, ceased on 30 November. It had provided housing and other support to beneficiaries of international protection and EU temporary protection. The NGO Refugee Support Aegean reported that from May the authorities had stopped paying the ûnancial assistance owed to asylum seekers by law.”
Police brutality
“Reports persisted of the police using unnecessary and excessive force, including by misusing less-lethal weapons, against protesters and journalists.
In December, human rights lawyer Anny Paparousou and a group of peaceful protesters were taken to a police station for identity checks ahead of a demonstration. This move appeared to be unlawful, and aimed primarily at preventing the protesters from participating in the protest.
In October a court awarded compensation to photojournalist Orestis Panagiotou for the serious injury he sustained after being hit directly and at close range by a water cannon while covering a demonstration in Athens in 2021. In November, an Athens court handed an eight-month suspended prison sentence to a police ofûcer found guilty of causing bodily injury by negligence to Orestis Panagiotou.”
Deaths in police custody
The report also highlights three high-profile cases of individuals who died following police actions.
“In July an appeals court in the capital, Athens, upheld the guilty verdict on two men for lethal bodily harm in relation to the death of LGBTI activist Zak Kostopoulos in September 2018.
In August a prosecutor in Chania charged four police ofûcers with intentional homicide with possible malice in relation to the case of Kostas Manioudakis, who died during a stopand-search operation in the village of Vryses in Crete in September 2023.
In September migrant worker Kamran Ashiq died in police custody. Pictures of his body published in the media showed injuries indicating he had been beaten. In December, the national police complaints mechanism announced that it had started its own investigation into the case.”
Freedom of expression under threat
Two lawsuits against journalists are highlighted as threats to press freedom.
“Greece had yet to introduce an effective legislative framework to tackle strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs).
In September an Athens Court heard the appeal of journalist Stavroula Poulimeni and media cooperative Alterthess against a ruling that partially accepted a 2021 lawsuit following their reporting on a case relating to environmental damage. The 2021 lawsuit was considered to bear the hallmarks of a SLAPP.
In October an Athens court dismissed a 2022 defamation lawsuit by Grigoris Dimitriadis, the prime minister’s former chief of staff, against three journalists including Thanasis Koukakis and the media outlets Newspaper of Editors and Reporters United, in relation to an investigative article on Greece’s surveillance scandal. Press freedom NGOs characterized the lawsuit as a SLAPP.”
Violence against women and girls
“In April, Kyriaki Griva was murdered by her former partner outside an Athens police station where she had gone to seek protection. The handling of her complaint by police caused an outcry and led to the investigation of four police officers for the offence of ‘exposing a person’s life to risk’.
In November the UN Human Rights Committee urged Greece to consider amending the 2021 legislation on joint custody to ensure the protection of all victims of domestic violence, and to specifically criminalize femicide.”
LGBTQ+ rights: Progress and persistent gaps
While acknowledging the legalisation of same-sex marriage in February 2024 as a step forward, Amnesty pointed out unresolved legal gaps that continue to leave LGBTQ+ individuals – especially trans people and their children – vulnerable to discrimination.
“According to the Greek Transgender Support Association, transgender people faced multiple barriers in their lives as the health system was still using a medical classification list that refers to trans status as a “gender identity disorder”.
In a report published in April concerning its 2023 findings, the Network for Recording Incidents of Racist Violence documented 158 incidents, 61 of which concerned LGBTI persons.”
______________________________________________
Are you seeking news from Greece presented from a progressive, non-mainstream perspective? Subscribe monthly or annually to support TPP International in delivering independent reporting in English. Don’t let Greek progressive voices fade.
Make sure to reference “TPP International” and your order number as the reason for payment.