GREECE – CASE GRE 290720
HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS
Acts of intimidation / Reprisals
The International Secretariat of the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) requests your URGENT intervention in the following situation in Greece.
Brief Description of the Situation:
The International Secretariat of the OMCT has been informed by the Greek Helsinki Monitor (GHM) about the acts of intimidation against Mr. Panayote Dimitras, GHM Spokesperson and a member of OMCT's General Assembly, as well as the reprisals against two Greek Roma families he was representing, for providing information on individual cases of human rights violations to the United Nations Human Rights Committee (UN-HRCttee).

According to the information received, on July 5, 2020, two Greek Roma families, including Mr. Christos Theodoropoulos, Ms. Vasiliki Karahaliou and one of their sons, and Mr. Evangelos Theodoropoulos, Ms. Georgia Souta and two of their sons, living in a Roma settlement in the Nea Zoe neighbourhood of the Municipality of Aspropyrgos and legally represented by Mr. Panayote Dimitras, sent a request for urgent interim measures to the UN-HRCttee in order to temporarily stop the pending forced eviction through demolition of the lodgings of both families, which was attempted without success on July 3, 2020 and subsequently announced for July 7, 2020. Both families live in poor housing conditions lacking adequate standards of living and are waiting for resettlement in adequate housing.
On July 6, 2020, the UN-HRCttee granted the injunction requested by the two families and called on the Greek authorities to refrain from forcibly evicting the members of both families while the communication was under consideration by the UN-HRCttee unless they were offered an alternative accommodation.
No further attempts to forcibly evict the families have taken place. Nonetheless, on July 8, 2020, Hellenic Police officers raided without a warrant the homes of the two Greek Roma families represented by Mr. Panayote Dimitras and of four of their relatives and arrested them for “stealing electricity”. The OMCT expresses its concern for this intervention which seems to be a form of reprisal against the two families because of their engagement with the United Nations mechanisms.
On the same day at around 10:30 am, while the arrested individuals were at the police station, Mr. Panayote Dimitras received a call from an unknown person calling from the settlement who repeatedly refused to identify himself. This person accused Mr. Panayote Dimitras of being responsible of the arrests described above and of harming the Greek Roma community of the Nea Zoe settlement with the legal actions taken by the GHM, in what appeared as an attempt to intimidate Mr. Panayote Dimitras and deter other Nea Zoe dwellers from taking further legal actions in defence of their right to adequate housing.
In the afternoon of July 8, 2020, the arrested individuals were released without charges.
On July 24, 2020, following an additional communication sent by Mr. Panayote Dimitras to inform about the above-mentioned raids and acts of reprisal, the UN-HRCttee extended the interim measures to eleven Greek Roma individuals at risk of eviction[1] and reiterated its request to Greece to provide information about the situation of the Greek Roma families from the Nea Zoe settlement. As of issuing this Urgent Appeal, no observations had been sent by Greece to the UN-HRCttee.
The OMCT expresses serious concerns over the acts of intimidation carried out by an unidentified person against Mr. Panayote Dimitras as well as over what seems to be reprisals by the Greek authorities against the two families for submitting a complaint to the UN-HRCttee regarding an alleged violation of the two Greek Roma families’ right to adequate housing.
The OMCT recalls that Greece is under a positive obligation to protect from reprisals individuals and groups collaborating with UN Treaty Bodies and urges the Greek authorities to carry out a prompt, transparent, impartial, effective and thorough investigation into the above-mentioned acts in order to identify those responsible and bring the perpetrator(s) to justice before an independent and impartial tribunal that will judge them according to domestic and international standards for a fair trial.
Actions requested:
Please write to the authorities of Greece to urge them to:
i. Guarantee in all circumstance the psychological well-being and physical integrity of Mr. Panayote Dimitras;
ii. Carry out an prompt, impartial, transparent, effective and thorough investigation into the above-mentioned events in order to identify those responsible and bring the perpetrator(s) to justice before and independent and impartial tribunal, that will judge them according to domestic and international standards for a fair trial;
iii. Put an end to all act of intimidation and reprisals against Mr. Panayote Dimitras as well as the reprisals against the two Theodoropoulos families;
iv. Ensure in all circumstances that human rights defenders and alleged victims of human rights violations are able to cooperate with UN Treaty Bodies without hindrance and fear of reprisals;
v. Conform in any circumstances with the provisions of the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, adopted on December 9, 1998 by the United Nations General Assembly, in particular its Articles 1, 2, 5 (c) and 12.2.
vi. Ensure in all circumstances respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms in accordance with the Greek Constitution and international human rights instruments ratified by Greece.
Addresses:
· Mr. Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Prime Minister of Greece, Email: mail@primeminister.gr
· Mr. Konstantinos Tsiaras, Minister of Justice, Email: grammateia@justice.gov.gr
· Mr. Panos Alexandis, General Secretary for Justice and Human Rights, Email: ggdad@justice.gov.gr
· Mr. Nikolaos Meletiou, Mayor of Aspropyrgos, Email: grafeiodimarxou@aspropyrgos.gr
· Permanent Representative of Greece, Ms Anna Korka, Permanent Mission of Greece to the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, Fax: +41 22 732 21 50; Email: grdel.gva@mfa.gr
·
Permanent Representative of Greece, H.E. Andreas
Papastavrou, Permanent Representation to the European Union (EU), Fax: +32 2
5515651, 5127912
Email: mea.bruxelles@rp-greece.be
***
Geneva-Brussels, 29 July 2020
The OMCT works with around 200 member organisations which constitute its SOS-Torture Network, to end torture, fight impunity and protect human rights defenders worldwide. Together, we make up the largest global group actively standing up to torture. Helping local voices be heard, we support our vital partners in the field and provide direct assistance to victims. OMCT’s international secretariat is based in Geneva, with offices in Brussels and Tunis.
[1] The beneficiaries of the interim measures include two families whose houses were raided, namely Mr. Andreas Theodoropoulos, Ms. Despoina Karahaliou, Ms. Panayitsa Karahaliou and Mr. Charalambos Theodoropoulos, Ms. Maria-Georgie Dionyssopoulou and Ms. Assimoula Dionyssopoulou, as well as Ms. Nicoletta Dionyssopoulou, Mr. Pavlos Panayotopoulos, Ms. Evangelia Theodoropoulou, Ms. Anthi Theodoropoulou and Mr. Andres Theodoropoulos.
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