the Court, in a strong joint minority opinion, held that Greece should be condemned also on the substantive part of the violation of Article 3 ECHR. In November 2023, via Circular 18/2023, the Deputy Prosecutor (Αντιεισαγγελέας) of the Supreme Court of Greece asked from public prosecutors to study the aforementioned decision, inter alia noting that “the prompt, thorough/detailed, impartial and real/effective criminal investigation of any such case […] greatly reduces the risk of adverse ECtHR rulings for our country”.109 Pushbacks at sea In April 2022, a research was published on the involvement of Frontex in the pushbacks of at least 957 refugees between March 2020 and September 2021.110 The report notes that ‘the term “prevention of departure” is commonly used to report practices better known as pushbacks, illegal under Greek, EU and international law. This was confirmed in interviews with several sources within Frontex as well as the Greek authorities.’ In July 2022, the ECtHR issued its long-awaited landmark judgment in the case of Safi and others v. Greece (also known as the “Farmakonisi case”),111 which was supported by GCR, Refugee Support Aegean with the support of Pro Asyl, the Network of Social Support of Refugees and Immigrants, the Lawyers’ Group for the rights of Refugees and Immigrants and the Hellenic League for Human Rights. The case concerned the sinking of a fishing boat transporting 27 foreign nationals in the Aegean Sea in January 2014, off the island of Farmakonisi, resulting in the death of 11 people. According to the allegations of the applicants, the coastguard vessel was towing the fishing boat at very high speed in order to push the refugees back towards Turkish waters and this caused the fishing boat to capsize, which the Greek Authorities denies. The Strasbourg Court found a violation of the right to life, both due to the authorities’ failure to investigate such a significant case responsibly and effectively, and on account of actions that they should and could have taken to protect human lives and prevent the tragic incident. The Court also held that Coast Guard officers had inflicted degrading and inhuman treatment against shipwreck survivors that night. The judgment of ECtHR ‘vindicates the victims by awarding compensation from the Greek State and brings to light an issue systematically concealed in public discourse: push backs and systematic deterrence practices which put lives at risk on a daily basis in Evros and the Aegean’.112 In 2023, RSA,113 Pro Asyl, GCR and ECRE filed Submissions to the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe regarding the execution of the Safi judgment (Farmakonisi Case). GCR and ECRE submit, inter alia, that the Safi case reveals a structural and complex problem, which cannot be considered an isolated incident and request the Committee of Ministers to place the Safi case under the enhanced supervision.114 109 110 111 112 113 114 Lawspot, “Καταδίκη της Ελλάδας στο ΕΔΔΑ για ποινική έρευνα μη ταχεία, διεξοδική/εμπεριστατωμένη, αμερόληπτη και πραγματική/αποτελεσματική (Εγκύκλιος ΕισΑΠ 18/2023)”, 6 November 2023, available in Greek at: https://tinyurl.com/4vfhdru2. DER SPIEGEL, together with Lighthouse Reports, the Swiss media outlets SRF and Republik and the French newspaper Le Monde spent months researching Frontex’s involvement in the Greek pushbacks. Following a request under the European Freedom of Information Act, the researchers succeeded in gaining access to the internal Frontex database and matching entries with photos and videos of pushback operations. The research reveals the full extent of Frontex support for Greek pushbacks in the Aegean Sea for the first time. See, SPIEGEL International, Frontex Involved in Illegal Pushbacks of Hundreds of Refugees, 28 April 2022, available at: https://bit.ly/433JkvS. See also, Lighthouse reports, Frontex, the EU Pushback Agency, Frontex’s internal database suggests the EU border agency involved in mass pushbacks, 6 May 2022, available at: https://bit.ly/3WpRXyg. ECtHR, Safi and others v. Greece, application no 5418/15, 7 July 2022, available at: https://bit.ly/45oTicG Press Conference: Judgement from the European Court of Human Rights in Safi and Others v Greece (Farmakonisi), Written on 07/07/2022 with a short summary of the case, available at: https://bit.ly/3OzXBfA and GCR, Vindication by the ECHR for Farmakonisi: Press conference on Monday, 11 July 2022, available at: https://bit.ly/3q61nmD. RSA, Beyond Farmakonisi: The responsibility of the Greek Coast Guard for human rights violations at sea, 26 September 2023, available at: https://bit.ly/3VYnl8K. GCR, GCR and ECRE Submission to the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe regarding the execution of the Safi judgment (Farmakonisi Case), available at: https://bit.ly/4aMaJWv. 43