CRIMINALISATION OF SOLIDARITY
Young search and rescuers under trial in Greece for helping migrants
Two young search and rescue volunteers, Sarah Mardini, a Syrian refugee, and Seán Binder, a German national, are facing trial and risking 25 years in prison for helping migrants land safely in Lesvos, Greece. Because of such humanitarian work, both volunteers have been the target of trumped up charges including human trafficking, money laundering, and being part of a ‘criminal’ organisation. Human rights organisations, including Amnesty International, have denounced the criminalisation of human rights defenders working on migrants’ rights.
Polish activists under investigation for helping migrants near the border with Belarus
End of October, activists Paweł Wrabec and Justyna Wolniewicz-Wrabec were detained after helping two Iraqi men in the Polish town of Hajnówka, close to the Belarusian border. The activists were driving them to a safe place when the police stopped their car. The activists have been accused of aiding illegal border crossings and now face up to 8 years in prison. The men they were assisting were also detained without more information being provided on their account. This is the first time activists are being criminalised for helping migrants in the Polish-Belarus border.
Italy: nearly a thousand prosecutions against people docking boats with migrants
In their latest report “From Sea to Prison”, the Italian association ARCI Porco Rosso and the activist network Alarm Phone have gathered nearly a thousand cases of migrants accused of migrants smuggling by Italian authorities only because they had been at the helm of the boat that brought them, and fellow migrants, to Italy, in the past decade. The report emphasises that this criminalisation, which relies also on anti-Mafia laws, contributes to deadly disasters at sea without decreasing smuggling activities. It also points out the devastating effects of the criminal prosecution on the lives of the accused, and the lack of basic rights while they are detained.
CRIMINALISATION OF SOLIDARITY
Young search and rescuers under trial in Greece for helping migrants
Two young search and rescue volunteers, Sarah Mardini, a Syrian refugee, and Seán Binder, a German national, are facing trial and risking 25 years in prison for helping migrants land safely in Lesvos, Greece. Because of such humanitarian work, both volunteers have been the target of trumped up charges including human trafficking, money laundering, and being part of a ‘criminal’ organisation. Human rights organisations, including Amnesty International, have denounced the criminalisation of human rights defenders working on migrants’ rights.
Polish activists under investigation for helping migrants near the border with Belarus
End of October, activists Paweł Wrabec and Justyna Wolniewicz-Wrabec were detained after helping two Iraqi men in the Polish town of Hajnówka, close to the Belarusian border. The activists were driving them to a safe place when the police stopped their car. The activists have been accused of aiding illegal border crossings and now face up to 8 years in prison. The men they were assisting were also detained without more information being provided on their account. This is the first time activists are being criminalised for helping migrants in the Polish-Belarus border.
Italy: nearly a thousand prosecutions against people docking boats with migrants
In their latest report “From Sea to Prison”, the Italian association ARCI Porco Rosso and the activist network Alarm Phone have gathered nearly a thousand cases of migrants accused of migrants smuggling by Italian authorities only because they had been at the helm of the boat that brought them, and fellow migrants, to Italy, in the past decade. The report emphasises that this criminalisation, which relies also on anti-Mafia laws, contributes to deadly disasters at sea without decreasing smuggling activities. It also points out the devastating effects of the criminal prosecution on the lives of the accused, and the lack of basic rights while they are detained.