In the context of the ongoing debate – here in Greece but also elsewhere – on whether ‘hate speech’ and racist parties should be banned, I refer to the following letter to the Editor of the Economist (6 July 2013) by the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights:
“SIR – I fully agree that “Greece needs a more robust anti-racism law (“Racist dilemmas”, June 22nd). But I do not agree that banning the neo-Nazi Golden Dawn political party “could be counterproductive” and may be contrary to the right of freedom of association. I recently reported on Golden Dawn following an official visit to Greece. The leadership of this party has historical links with the military junta that ruled Greece in the 1970s and is openly contemptuous of democracy.
Greek democracy is under serious threat. I have urged the Greek authorities actively to prosecute individual members of Golden Dawn and others who have engaged in hate speech or violent racist attacks. Under international human-rights law the Greek authorities would be within their rights to ban Golden Dawn as well. The right to freedom of association is not absolute and may be restricted to protect the rights of others. Greece is bound by the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, article four of which calls on states to ban racist organisations.
Moreover, Greece is bound by the case law of the European Court of Human Rights, which has found that, under certain conditions, states can impose restrictions on political parties and their members or supporters.
Such restrictions are possible if a political party has been found to use violence to achieve its goals and deny fundamental rights and freedoms, including the principle of non-discrimination.
Nils Muiznieks Commissioner for human rights, Council of Europe Strasbourg”
The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders (a joint programme of two reputed international NGOs: the FIDH andOMCT) has been informed by the Greek Helsinki Monitor (GHM) about the police harassment of Ms. Electra Koutra, GHM legal counsel, in the framework of police profiling operation against transgender persons in Thessaloniki. Read the rest of this entry »
I happen to live – and quite happily – in Greece but there are moments that I am almost ashamed. I reported on some of these moments before, but today’s report by Human Rights WatchRead the rest of this entry »
At a time when other parties in Greece are squabbling over how to toughen anti-racism laws and ban denial of Nazi crimes, the neo-nazi Golden Dawn exploits the disarray by tabling on Tuesday tabled draft legislation seeking harsher laws for offences committed by undocumented migrants in Greece. The draft also seeks to criminalise denial of “genocides of Greeks [on the basis that Turks have massacred ethnic Greeks in what used to be the Ottoman Empire]. An explanatory memorandum to the draft bill says the law would “preserve the national memory”. No fewer than four other draft anti racism bills are now being submitted – separately by New Democracy, Syriza and Independent Greeks, and a joint bill by Pasok and Democratic Left. In a statement released last Thursday, Human Rights Watch slammed the government for not reaching an agreement on proposed anti racism legislation.“ With people being attacked on the streets, Greece urgently needs to beef up its criminal justice response to hate crimes,” said Judith Sunderland, senior Western Europe researcher at Human Rights Watch. “This draft law contains some good provisions and should be improved in parliament rather than delayed further.”
A really strange case has popped up in Athens, not immediately related to the demonstrations in Turkey but it could add to the tension: A Turkish activist, Bulut Yayla, was reportedly abducted from Solonos Street in Exarchia on Thursday 30 May 2013 and two days later he was traced in Istanbul’s antiterrorism department, where he was being held for questioning. Read the rest of this entry »
The ‘new’ Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe (who took office on on 24 January 2012) Nils Muižnieks stated in his end of the year message some hard truths about the position of human rights defenders in Europe.
”Defamation, threats, verbal and physical attacks, sanctions and judicial harassment are used to deter human rights activists from working with migrants.” Nils Muižnieks states that in several Council of Europe countries, the rise of xenophobic and anti-migrant discourse has “negatively impacted” on the work of human rights defenders who protect and promote the rights of migrants.“Human rights defenders are even increasingly labelled as traitors who are threatening national identity and security,” he adds. “They are often exposed to intimidation and abuse.
“The situation in Greece is particularly worrisome as migrants have become targets of unacceptable, extreme violence notably by members, including MPs, of the far right political party of Golden Dawn.“Human rights defenders defending migrants are under threat. There have been several instances of lawyers being threatened and physically attacked in Athens as they were assisting migrants in the course of asylum and other legal procedures.
“In some Council of Europe countries the work of defenders working with migrants and their rights is being criminalised. In France, legal provisions corresponding to the so-called délit de solidarité the offence of solidarity concretely result in law enforcement bodies pressuring and punishing human rights defenders providing assistance to irregular migrants. Persons standing up for the rights of migrants have been detained, prosecuted and/or fined.“ “In Belgium, similar tendencies have been identified and persons who have been demonstrating in favour of the rights of migrants have been arrested.”
In Greece there is a frequently heard ‘complaint’ that international human rights groups – in particular AI – have the same agenda as the USA. At a recent meeting with friends in Chania, AI’s position on Pussy Riot was quoted as evidence.
I countered by pointing out that AI on many occasions has taken a stand that seems to go against US policy, from the death penalty to Guantanamo Bay and the Israeli occupied territories. A recent video referred to here makes that clear again in the case of Israel. Perhaps even more shocking are some of the comments that seems to confirm the existence of an orchestrated response [by whom?] to equal any criticism of Israel to anti-Semitism.
Every Friday since December 2009 residents of al-Nabi Saleh and solidarity activists gather around noon in the village centre and march peacefully towards the spring. They have been met repeatedly with unnecessary and excessive force by the Israeli army including the use of stun grenades, pepper spray, batons and guns. Demonstrations are dispersed as soon as they begin and are usually not allowed to reach the spring. The Israeli army raids the village regularly, usually during the night, and conducts house searches and arrests, including the arrest of children under the age of 15.
Israeli military laws in place in the West Bank impose sweeping and arbitrary restrictions on freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, requiring people to obtain advance permission from the Israeli military for any proposed gathering of 10 or more persons “for a political purpose of for a matter that could be interpreted as political”. Nariman Tamimi told Amnesty International that in al-Nabi Saleh and all areas where there is popular resistance, police use extreme violence, noting that “there is nothing [to the protests] except that you chant and express your opinion.” As one of the organizers of the al-Nabi Salneh protests and a coordinator of the village’s popular committee, Bassem Tamimi and his family have been the target of harsh treatment by the Israeli army. For more see the excellent film:
On Monday, September 24, 2012 (yes 2012!) a Greek man was arrested for making a Facebook page that lampooned the Eastern Orthodox monk Elder Paisios, a religious figure to whom some have arbitrarily attributed saintly properties. The authorities charged the man with “malicious blasphemy,” because he had named his page “Elder Pastitsios” a reference to the popular Greek pasta dish, and the page parodied the monk and his work in the vein of Pastafarianism, a lighthearted, satirical movement that promotes irreligion.
My good friend the Greek comedian Silas has the nerve and creativity to give his views on where freedom of expression, opinion and satire stand in Greece today (subtitled in English). How a stand-up comedian can be a HRD (even if – better exactly because – you may not agree with him)
Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards 