»The truth may be bitter, but it must be told« Summary, conclusions and demands Human rights violations at the Greek border The refoulement of refugees at sea We were able to glean the following patterns of serious human rights violations committed by the Greek coast guard from our interviews with refugees from a wide variety of countries of origin in and outside the detention centres in Chios, Samos and Lesbos. Refoulement by the Greek coast guard within national territorial waters and at the external borders of the EU is occurring on a systematic scale. This practice seriously endangers the life of those seeking protection, apart from subjecting them to risks on return to Turkey. ■ The coast guard attempts to block small boats carrying refugees and push them out of the national territorial waters. In order to do so, they circle the boats with their own boats causing waves. These risky maneuvers can result in the death of refugees. ■ Refugees who are already in Greek territorial waters or even at the Greek coast are being driven back into Turkish waters. Their dinghies are deliberately damaged, so that they can, at best, return to the Turkish coast. ■ Refugees are being ›refouled‹ by the coast guards and deposited on so-called »dry (i.e. uninhabited) islands«. ■ The Greek coast guard systematically abuses newly arriving refugees. In one reported case (on Chios island), the degree of maltreatment amounted to torture (serious beating, mock execution, electric shocks, pushing a refugee’s head into a bucket full of water (»submarino«). »Refoulement« of refugees at the border in the Evros region In the Evros region (Greek-Turkish border), refugees are arrested upon arrival by the Greek border guard and detained without official registration. They are held, deprived of their fundamental rights. They are detained without contact to the outside world (incommunicado) for several days and are then illegally and forcibly returned to Turkey, where their life and liberty may be at risk or where they are at risk of deportation to their countries of origin. The conduct of the Greek authorities violates international refugee and human rights law. The practices of the coast 6 Summary, conclusions and demands guard and border police constitute a serious breach of the principle of non-refoulement contained in article 33 (I) of the 1951 Geneva Convention on the status of refugees, article 3 (I) of the UN Convention against Torture (UNCAT), and the right to protection against torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment contrary to article 3 European Convention for Human Rights, (ECHR) and article 7 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), as well as articles 5 and 14 of the UDHR Universal Declaration of Human Rights 1948, etc. Furthermore, the Greek authorities endanger the lives of refugees. This violates the international obligation of the Greek State to respect the right to life, as enshrined in international human rights instruments (art. 2 ECHR, art. 6 ICCPR, art 3 of the UDHR). The excessive use of force, ill - treatment and torture as carried out by the Greek coast guard constitutes a flagrant violation of international human rights instruments and violates human dignity (art. 3 ECHR, art. 7 ICCPR, art. 3 UNCAT, art. 5 UDHR). Illegal deportation orders and detention The administrative practice at the border deprives refugees and other persons in need of international protection of their rights and exposes them to serious risks. ■ The police arrest all new arrivals, including asylum seekers and particularly vulnerable individuals such as victims of torture and human trafficking, disabled persons, pregnant women, minors and refugees from countries such as Iraq, Afghanistan and Somalia. They are all issued with automatic deportation orders – without a hearing, without any examination of their entitlement to protection. This practice effectively constitutes a denial of access to the asylum determination procedure. ■ Subsequent to the deportation order a detention order is issued. Detention is not the exception, it is the rule. ■ At the time of our fact-finding mission, there were 18 unaccompanied minors from Afghanistan and Somalia detained in Samos. In Mitilini, there were over 30 unaccompanied minors from Afghanistan in detention. The youngest detainee was ten years old. The authority responsible for minors, the »Prosecutor for Minors« had not been informed, although this is provided for by law in the case of deportation orders, detention and release