Complaint against Greece filed with the European Commission, November 2009
November 2009
This comÂplaint is an initiaÂtiÂve of the Dutch CounÂcil for RefuÂgees and is also subÂmitÂted on behalf of the FinÂnish RefuÂgee Advice CentÂre, PRO ASYL and RefuÂgee and Migrant Justice.
DespiÂte numÂeÂrous appeals to Greece and to the EuroÂpean ComÂmisÂsiÂon, the Greek asylÂum sysÂtem remains in a deploÂrable staÂte. In this comÂplaint we will demonsÂtraÂte that, by faiÂling to improÂve the appalÂling conÂdiÂtiÂons for asylÂum seeÂkers, Greece is blaÂtantÂly vioÂlaÂting the proÂviÂsiÂons of the EU asylÂum acquis, incluÂding some of the most funÂdaÂmenÂtal prinÂciÂples upon which the EU is founÂded, such as the prinÂciÂple of non-refouÂleÂment, the right to asylÂum, and the right to human digniÂty. It is essenÂtiÂal that Greece brings its law and pracÂtiÂce into line with the EU asylÂum acquis. It is thus of the utmost importance that immeÂdiaÂte action be taken by Greece as well as the EuroÂpean ComÂmisÂsiÂon to tackÂle the numÂeÂrous proÂblems that currÂentÂly exist in Greece.