I Have Rights.

Press release: Submission to the European Commission for the Have Your Say initiative on the Frontex Recast Regulation. | I Have Rights. I HAVE RIGHTS’ Advocacy Taskforce submitted feedback to the European Commission regarding the Recast Regulation on the European Border and Coast Guard/Frontex. In our submission, we focus on Article 4...

Read the full submission on our website: ihaverights.eu/press-releas...

Today, I HAVE RIGHTS’ Advocacy Taskforce provided input to the EU Commission proposal for a Recast Regulation to expand Frontex’s operations at EU external borders, where IHR proposed the suspension rather than expansion of Frontex’s presence in compliance with EU law.

I Have Rights calls on Greece to reintroduce prima facie decisions for Palestinians and evacuate recognised refugees from Gaza. | I Have Rights. While several European countries are actively coordinating the evacuation of Palestinians from Gaza, Greece continues to abstain from any meaningful effort. There is no clear guidance to candidates fo...

📢As the responsible state, Greek authorities must coordinate the evacuation of Palestinians with Greek recognised refugee status or awaiting status from Gaza.
Read the full statement and list of demands to both Greek and EU member states here: ihaverights.eu/i-have-right...

I Have Rights is aware of at least two brothers with Greek refugee status that have been prevented from leaving the Gaza strip. Their continuous attempts at contact with the competent Greek authorities to coordinate their evacuation have gone unanswered as the situation continues to deteriorate.

Press release: The Greek Ombusdperson finds it imperative that vulnerable persons be transferred to mainland facilities in accordance with Greek law.  | I Have Rights. Following a joint complaint made earlier by Samos-based organisations, the Greek Ombudsperson, on the 1st of August, found it imperative that persons suffering from serious illnesses or having other v...

📝 On the 1st of August, the Greek Ombudsperson responded to a joint complaint by Samos based organisations concerning the lack—or complete absence—of organised transfers for vulnerable people from the Samos CCAC to mainland facilities.

📢Read the full response here:
ihaverights.eu/press-releas...

Read the full statement here: www.mobileinfoteam.org/joint-statem...

🚨 JOINT STATEMENT: Addressing the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers’ (CM) last examination of the Greek asylum system under the M.S.S. and H.A. and Others v. Greece groups of cases. @bordercrim.bsky.social @borderviolence.bsky.social @ihaverights.bsky.social @equallegalaid.bsky.social

JOINT STATEMENT is out now! On the suspension of asylum examinations by the Greek government. Read the full statement here: ihaverights.eu?p=6809&fb-ed...

New Report: Greek Ministry of Migration Fails to Comply with Data Protection Order in Samos CCAC | I Have Rights. The Hellenic Ministry of Migration (MoMA) continues to violate data protection rights of asylum seekers in the Samos Closed Control Access Centre (CCAC), I Have Rights and Homo Digitalis said in a rep...

New report reveals a continued lack of GDPR compliance in deploying the Centaur and Hyperion surveillance systems in the Samos CCAC. People held in the CCAC were largely not properly informed about CCTV cameras, drones, and biometric data collection.

Find out more: ihaverights.eu/border-tech-...

New Report: Greek Ministry of Migration Fails to Comply with Data Protection Order in Samos CCAC | I Have Rights. The Hellenic Ministry of Migration (MoMA) continues to violate data protection rights of asylum seekers in the Samos Closed Control Access Centre (CCAC), I Have Rights and Homo Digitalis said in a rep...

New report together with Homo Digitalis out today exposes ongoing data protection violations in the Samos CCAC. These are emblematic of a system where control and surveillance are prioritised over the rights of those seeking protection.

Read more: ihaverights.eu/border-tech-...

Following a fire in the Samos CCAC that destroyed containers & belongings, people report being left without accommodation, some sleeping outside, told to "manage on their own".

Not an isolated case, but yet another example of systemic failure to ensure dignified conditions for people on the move.

Joint Statement: Cash assistance must resume immediately: After 9 months without financial support, asylum seekers in Greece are struggling to meet their basic needs | I Have Rights. The undersigned organisations are in contact with asylum seekers living in refugee camps throughout Greece who report desperation at the ongoing lack of cash assistance payments, which has left people...

After months without cash assistance, asylum seekers in #Greece are struggling to meet their basic needs.

Cash assistance must resume immediately!

Read the joint statement: ihaverights.eu/joint-statem...

NGOs have been documenting human rights violations since the camp opened in 2021. Despite recommendations by @CoE_CPT, human rights bodies and NGOs, 3 years later nothing has been done.

⌛️It’s high time that changes.

As people of this EU-funded facility continue to be exposed to de facto detention and inadequate living conditions, we are concerned that Greece may be a blueprint for the implementation of the new EU Migration Pact across the region.

People in #Samos are prevented from leaving the CCAC for up to 25 days after arrival. Many sleep on cardboard without blankets in overcrowded spaces. There isn't always running water and it’s rarely hot. Diseases are spreading but there is limited access to medical care.

Joint Letter: Unlawful Detention and Sub-standard Conditions Must Not Become a Blueprint For The EU Migration Pact | I Have Rights. Together with four organizations, I Have Rights urges the EU Commissioner for Home Affairs and Migration, Magnus Brunner, to use the EU Commission’s oversight to monitor and improve conditions in the ...

Time and time again, NGOs have condemned the dreadful state of the EU-funded Samos CCAC. To this day, nothing has changed. So @ihaverights.bsky.social and 4 other NGOs have written to the EU Commissioner for Home Affairs @magnusbrunner to take action.

Read: ihaverights.eu/joint-letter...

🚨 Human Dignity & Equality: alarming implications for human rights
- Surveillance creates discomfort and anxiety, with some comparing it to imprisonment
- Biometric and AI systems risk reinforcing racial and ethnic biases with limited transparency & accountability

⚖️ The report highlights serious rights implications:
- Right to Privacy: Intrusive surveillance (phone removal, biometric data collection, and cameras) raises privacy concerns
- Right to Information: Lack of transparency about data collection and processing violates GDPR

When asked about improvements needed in the CCAC, people on the move prioritized better access to basic necessities and procedures over concerns about surveillance tech.

🚨General observation from our report on tech in the Samos CCAC w/ @borderviolence.bsky.social

🔍 Opinions on technology in the Samos CCAC vary among people interviewed

24% likened the experience to imprisonment
17 % felt controlled & having their privacy invaded
22% reported no impact

“Phone is company” — How the authorities routinely and forcibly remove the phones of people on the… A new report by I Have Rights (IHR) and the Border Violence Monitoring Network (BVMN) details testimonies from 59 people on the move who…

Great piece on the impact of phone removals: being deprived of their phones during the first days in the Samos CCAC exacerbates people's isolation & vulnerability to human rights violations & limits their ability to gather evidence on potential mistreatment.
areyousyrious.medium.com/phone-is-com...

More than 400 minors are currently detained in inhuman & degrading conditions in the Samos CCAC.

Last week, the @echr.coe.int granted @hrlpsamos.bsky.social 's request for interim measures against the Greek government for the horrific living conditions in the ‘Safe Zone’.

“It does not feel like real life”: Children’s everyday life in Greek refugee camps | Save the Children’s Resource Centre In 2023, one in four applicants for international protection in Europe was a child. Greece remains a critical entry point, with over 6,400 refugee and migrant children arriving in the first half of 20...

Important research highlights systemic gaps in reception facilities in 🇬🇷, depriving children of accessing basic rights.

Despite poor conditions in mainland facilities, children often feel “relief" when moving from island CCACs to the mainland.

resourcecentre.savethechildren.net/pdf/Children...

🇪🇺 & 🇬🇷authorities should:
🔵Publish technical data for Hyperion
🔵Use less invasive methods such as non-biometric ID cards instead of fingerprinting for facility access
🔵Regularly report on the technologies’ impact on vulnerable groups & measures to prevent discrimination

While fingerprinting caused less concern among interviewees than phone removal or surveillance, 22% still felt discomfort. Many expressed frustration with the long queues, security checks, and strict entry/exit rules—comparisons were made to living in a prison.

📉 lack of transparency
71% of people on the move reported they weren’t informed about why their fingerprints are collected
This violates GDPR guidelines that mandate clear disclosure of data collection purposes and individuals' rights

🔒 #EU-funded Hyperion system controls access to the Samos CCAC using biometric data and ID cards. People on the move must scan fingerprints and/or biometric ID cards to enter, exit, or move within the facility.

🚨Our report on tech w/ @borderviolence.bsky.social studied how this affects people.

The Palestine Laboratory – EP 2 Exposing how Israel’s sales of military technology is aiding state control around the world.

In a new @aljazeera.com documentary on the use of Israeli tech in Europe, our @elladodd.bsky.social discusses the role of technology in the Samos CCAC.

Watch now (section on Samos from 16:35): www.aljazeera.com/program/feat...

📢 Join Us for Our Upcoming Event with
@borderviolence.bsky.social.

Discover the (mis)use of technology in the Samos CCAC and the covert operations targeting asylum seekers on Samos.

Sign up: us06web.zoom.us/meeting/regi...

In the Dec 2024 @borderviolence.bsky.social report, we highlight continuing deplorable living conditions in the Samos CCAC, marked by overcrowding & undignified conditions.

Learn more about our & other insights from border watchdog orgs in Greece & the Balkans:
borderviolence.eu/reports/balk...