The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in Strasbourg on Tuesday made a landmark ruling that Greece illegally deported a Turkish woman back to Turkey. According to the court, it was a systematic practice of the local authorities, reports TASR according to the AP agency.
A Turkish woman identified only with the initials ARE was awarded 20,000 euros in compensation, because in 2019 she was illegally expelled after crossing the Greek-Turkish border and was not given the opportunity to apply for asylum. “The court concluded that there are strong indications that, at the time of the reported events, there was a systematic practice of deporting third-country nationals by the Greek authorities from the Evros area (on the Greek border) to Turkey,” the ECtHR’s decision states.
According to the AP agency, the court’s decision could affect the way Europe deals with migrants at its borders. Currently, Greece and several member states of the European Union are striving for stricter immigration controls.
Citing a lack of evidence, the court rejected a second request by a man from Afghanistan, who claimed he was illegally returned to Turkey from the Greek island of Samos in 2020 as a 15-year-old. At the hearings, representatives of the Greek government rejected the accusations, questioned the authenticity of the evidence presented, and claimed that Greece’s border policy was in line with international law.
The European Court of Human Rights is an international court based in Strasbourg, France, which adjudicates human rights violations by the 46 member states of the Council of Europe.
