Afghan Aziz Berati travels with his family and 45 other refugees on a rubber dinghy from Turkey across the Aegean Sea to Greece. At dawn on May 28, 2021, they reach the shore of Lesvos and go ashore. They are divided into two groups and say they want to apply for asylum. But only a group can do that.
We’ve lost all hope.
Things are very different for Aziz Berati and 31 other refugees. Only hours later they are drifting again on the Aegean Sea. Instead of examining their asylum applications, the Greek coast guard drove them back to Turkish waters, the refugees say, and released them there in an inflatable life raft. “We have lost all hope,” Aziz Berati recalls. “I tried to calm the children and also some of the women who were crying and screaming.” Finally, the Turkish coast guard got the refugees out of the water.
Coast Guard denies allegations
The Greek coast guard describes the allegations as tendentious on request. She never acted like that. There is no indication in their files that such an incident ever took place.
Greece has carried out a pushback here without giving the people the opportunity to go through an asylum procedure beforehand.
For Nula Frei, an expert in migration law at the University of Fribourg, it’s a clear case: “Greece has carried out a pushback here without giving people the opportunity to go through an asylum procedure beforehand.” This is not permissible under international law, says the legal expert who works in the field of migration. Greece has the right to protect its borders from illegal migration. But whether entry was illegal can only be determined after examining a person’s need for protection.
Evaluation of the Frontex database shows: not an isolated case
The European border protection agency Frontex also knows the case: The events are noted in their internal database – including the note that Frontex was involved. The Frontex data on the operations in the Aegean are available from the Rundschau, Lighthouse Reports, Republik, Spiegel and Le Monde. The editors were able to evaluate the data and compare it with the databases of the Turkish Coast Guard and NGOs. One category in particular stands out: “Prevention of Departure”. So actually: prevention of departure. In the Aegean, that would mean: A boat stays in Turkish waters. Turns about before it reaches Greek waters. People never leave Turkey at all. But the database also contains “Prevention of Departure” cases in which refugees were proven to have been in Greece – some even landed on an island, like Aziz Berati. At least 22 cases of such pushbacks can be found in the category for the examined period from March 2020 to September 2021 – 957 people are affected. They were pushed back to Turkey and abandoned on life rafts. This is shown by comparing the database with data from the Turkish Coast Guard and NGOs. Frontex internal sources confirm that pushbacks are actually recorded under “Prevention of Departure”.
Frontex is mostly involved in the same way: they discover the boats and report them to the Greek Coast Guard. Frontex shares legal responsibility for the human rights violations in the Aegean because it does not perform its monitoring function, says the migration law expert. “Frontex also has to ensure that fundamental and human rights are respected at the border.”
Strengthening of fundamental rights officers
Werner Salzmann (SVP) is President of the Security Policy Committee of the Council of States. He takes the pushback allegations seriously. But the fact that Switzerland is not supporting the Frontex expansion is the wrong answer. “The main problem is that Frontex is underfunded and cannot do its job justice.” The expansion also strengthens the fundamental rights officers in Frontex. “They will be responsible for training the state border protection authorities and Frontex. I’m hoping for an improvement from this.”
Frontex does not comment directly on the allegations, but states in general: “Frontex ensures and promotes respect for fundamental rights in all its border protection activities.” Frontex is committed to maintaining the highest standards. In addition, Frontex officials are bound by a code of conduct.
Bashar Deeb, Emmanuel Freudenthal, Gabriele Gatti and Francesca Pierigh collaborated on the research.