Front Line Defenders is deeply alarmed by the Greek government’s continuous attempts to silence and intimidate the human rights defenders and organisations working to protect the rights of the people on the move. The public targeting of the Human Rights Legal Project and their lead human rights lawyer and co-founder Dimitrios Choulis by the Minister of Migration and Asylum during a TV interview, and the issuance of a European Arrest Warrant for Tommy Olsen, founder of Aegean Boat Report, are the latest cases reflecting the systemic reprisals against migrant rights defenders in Greece.
On 11 February 2026, Norwegian authorities informed the founder of Aegean Boat Report, Tommy Olsen, that the Greek authorities had issued a European Arrest Warrant (EAW) against him. He was informed that the charges include human trafficking, facilitation of human trafficking, and operating a criminal organisation through Aegean Boat Report. Founded in 2017, Aegean Boat Report is an independent organisation which monitors and documents the maritime arrivals, pushbacks, and human rights violations against people on the move in the Aegean Sea.
The judicial harassment against Tommy Olsen started in 2021 when he was accused of facilitating ‘illegal migration flows’ which was subsequently dismissed due to lack of evidence. A prosecutor in Kos reopened the investigation and, on 14 May 2024, issued a national arrest warrant for Tommy Olsen citing the same accusations. The basis for these accusations is that Tommy Olsen in his capacity for Aegean Boat Report notifies the Greek authorities when people on the move arrive on a Greek island or are in distress at sea. Aegean Boat Report notifies the authorities so people on the move are located and can thus exercise their right to asylum. The Greek authorities claim that this lawful and important human rights work is a crime as they consider it facilitation of ‘illegal migration flows’. Consequently, the human rights defender was not able to go to Greece since May 2024 as he would have been arrested. Now, the EAW prevents him from safely entering any European Union member state.
On 10 February 2026, the Greek Minister of Migration and Asylum publicly targeted migrant rights defender and lawyer Dimitrios Choulis during a TV interview. The Minister accused him of representing one of the survivors of the ship wreck near Chios as a victim instead of a criminal. The Minister claims the survivor is a trafficker. On 3 February 2026, a boat of the Greek Coast Guard collided with a dinghy carrying around 40 people on the move, capsizing the dinghy and causing the death of 15 people. The Minister also accused the human rights defender for wrongly blaming the Coast Guard for the collusion and the death of 15 people.
During the interview, the Minister also targeted the Human Rights Legal Project (HRLP), claiming that they chose to “side with the traffickers.” Although the Minister did not explicitly name HRLP, he referred to an NGO in Samos affiliated with Dimitrios Choulis. These references evidently target HRLP and his statement is considered a clear attempt to discredit the organisation’s human rights work.
HRLP is a legal aid organisation which defends the fundamental rights of people on the move in Greece and addresses the systemic failures of the Greek justice system and EU migration policy to hold perpetrators of violence against people on the move accountable. HRLP has continuously been the target of intimidation by the Greek authorities, including through unwarranted investigations and audits. Similarly, Dimitrios Choulis has faced surveillance and prosecution on several occasions. However, in all cases the charges were either dismissed or he was acquitted.
These recent attempts to discredit and criminalise Dimitrios Choulis, Tommy Olsen, and their respective organisations appear to be a deliberate strategy by the Greek government to undermine the work of migrant rights defenders and organisations. Migrant rights defenders in Greece have played a central role in exposing human rights violations, including pushbacks at land and sea borders. They also defend the rights of people on the move, including minors, who are falsely accused of smuggling and trafficking, amongst others by representing them in court. For instance, through HRLP’s work, many criminalised people on the move whose cases might otherwise have remained invisible have been rightfully acquitted of charges that could have resulted in hundreds of years of cumulative imprisonment.
On 5 February 2026, the Greek parliament passed the new amendments to the migration code, which further criminalise and undermine the work of migrant rights organisations. The amendments criminalise humanitarian work by imposing heavy penalties on persons facilitating irregular entry, which, according to the Greek migration code, includes helping and saving people in distress at sea. Being a member of a humanitarian NGO is considered an aggravating factor as this can raise the charge from misdemeanour to felony. Furthermore, if a member of an NGO is accused of facilitating irregular entry, the authorities can de-register the organisation from the NGO Registry of the Ministry of Migration and Asylum. Consequently, the organisation would lose its right to work in Greece.
Since the increasing arrival of people on the move on the Aegean islands in 2015, Greek authorities have been using judicial harassment as a deterrent against migrant rights defenders and solidarity groups. However, after leaving many human rights defenders in a legal limbo for years, most of the criminal cases ended with acquittals or dismissals. These cases highlight that human rights defenders protecting and promoting the rights of people on the move were not involved in any criminal or illegal activity, but acted on humanitarian grounds and their actions were protected by international law.
Front Line Defenders is deeply worried by the continuous efforts by the Greek authorities to restrict the work of migrant rights organisations and solidarity groups by passing laws with the sole aim of curtailing any means of support to people on the move. We call on the authorities to adhere to its obligations under European and international law, stop spreading false accusations, and halt the criminalisation of the human rights defenders who defend the rights of migrants. The Greek government should enable an environment where all human rights defenders, including migrant rights organisations, can carry out their human rights work without fear of reprisals, criminalisation, or intimidation.