– some of them in the first case – managed to re-enter Greece in 2022 and subsequently, filed an official complaint before the Public Prosecutor.91 Criminalisation of Human Rights Defenders (HRD) and organisations connected with pushbacks In May 2022, four organisations were reportedly92 under criminal investigation for potential involvement with smuggling networks, because they notified authorities about the location of newly arrived migrants and requested that the authorities provide assistance and access to asylum procedures in Greece. In the following months, no investigations took place but it created an increasingly hostile environment in the field of HRDs’ work in Greece and a widespread fear 93 of criminalisation. Soon after, in June 2022, the UN special rapporteur on human rights defenders, Mary Lawlor, carried out an official country visit to Greece from 13 to 22 June 2022 following an invitation from the Greek government. In the statement on preliminary observations, it was noted that: ‘the nature of cooperation between the Government and civil society, and the overall perception about the role of civil society and human rights defenders in Greece, has undergone a significant shift since 2019. Since then, human rights defenders have found it increasingly difficult to carry out their work, especially in fields that might be considered controversial or geopolitically complicated or sensitive. This is particularly tangible in relation to those who defend the rights of asylum seekers, migrants and refugees, including those providing humanitarian assistance, legal aid, participating in search and rescue operations and documenting pushbacks. While previously human rights defenders in these areas had enjoyed an overall conducive environment for carrying out their activities, the current policy framework, that emphasises ‘security’ over humanitarian assistance, has led to a number of constraints’; ‘[A] sense of pervasive fear […] is felt by a significant segment of human rights defenders, which seems to be a direct result of the criminalisation of migration and their legitimate, peaceful work for the rights of refugees, asylum seekers and migrants’94 As highlighted by the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights defenders ‘human rights defenders promoting and protecting the rights of migrants, asylum-seekers and refugees, including human rights lawyers, humanitarian workers, volunteers and journalists, have been subjected to smear campaigns, a changing regulatory environment, threats and attacks and the misuse of criminal law against them to a shocking degree’’.95 The Campaign for Access to Asylum,96 in an announcement on 5 October 2022, underlined that: ‘The authorities’ systematic use of misinformation regarding "false reports on pushbacks" aims to cover up illegal practices and to target and put pressure on people and organisations that report these incidents’ and added that ‘…The incident in Evros highlighted the problem of pushbacks in a multitude of ways. Systematic propaganda and misinformation about these practices, which often result in the loss of human lives, is aimed at concealing the truth, obscuring the consequences (deaths, drownings, violence, etc.) and, of course, at targeting lawyers, organisations, as well as media and journalists who report these incidents’. 91 92 93 94 95 96 For more details on the cases, See GCR, at Europe’s Borders: Between Impunity and Criminalization, March 2023, available at: https://bit.ly/3opKToW. Among others, News.IT, ‘Evros: Investigation into the activities of NGOs and their connection with illegal immigrant networks’, 29 May 2022, Available at (Greek), https://bit.ly/4208ryu. ‘I also note the sense of pervasive fear that is felt by a significant segment of human rights defenders, which seems to be a direct result of the criminalization of migration and their legitimate, peaceful work for the rights of refugees, asylum seekers and migrants’: UN Special Rapporteur on human rights defenders, ‘Statement on preliminary observations and recommendations following official visit to Greece’, 22 June 2022, available at: https://bit.ly/3q1bwAZ. Ibid. Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, Mary Lawlor - Visit to Greece (A/HRC/52/29/Add.1), available at: https://bit.ly/43n0hS1, para. 114. ‘It is the Greek Government’s responsibility to immediately put a stop to informal forced returns (pushbacks): They endanger human lives and breach the state’s international obligations’ in Joint Press Release of 16 civil society organisations Asylum Campaign (Καμπάνια για το Άσυλο), 5 October 2022, available at: https://bit.ly/3MTm7qM. 37