Europe’s top human rights watchdog slams police violence against Roma in Greece
The problem of police violence against Roma in Greece “goes beyond a series of isolated incidents and reflects deeply embedded racism,” a senior official with Europe’s top human rights watchdog has said.
In a nine-page memorandum to the government following a field visit to the country in February, Michael O’Flaherty, the Council of Europe’s commissioner for human rights, said he was “very concerned about the deaths of three young Roma, shot by the police in recent years.”
One of the cases referenced in the report is that of Nikos Sampanis, an 18-year-old Roma from Aspropyrgos, who was shot dead by police during a car chase in October 2021.
“More than 45 bullets were allegedly fired by seven police officers towards a reportedly stolen car, with three unarmed Roma teenagers inside,” O’Flaherty said in the report, noting that the “then Minister of Citizen Protection visited the seven police officers while they were being held at the police headquarters, and that [the] Minister of Development and Investment publicly congratulated the officers on social media.”
O’Flaherty called on the Greek government to “ensure prompt and effective investigation into all allegations of violence, racism and discrimination against Roma,” including by law enforcement.
According to the General Secretariat of Social Solidarity and Fight Against Poverty, in 2021 the total population of Roma in Greece amounted to 117,495 people, who live in 462 areas. Of these, 12,000 live in self-made shacks and shelters in settlements lacking basic infrastructure, almost 47,000 in shacks, tents or prefabricated containers in settlements with partial infrastructure, and almost 35,000 in impoverished/ disadvantaged urban areas.
In addition to the treatment of Roma by police, the report also addresses at the general situation concerning the human rights of Romain Greece as well as the right to adequate housing and related essential services.
While the report acknowledges the efforts of the government to address the human rights situation of Roma communities, particularly through the National Strategy and Action Plan for the Social Inclusion of Roma 2021-2030, the “important work” of the General Secretariat for Social Solidarity and Fight against Poverty and civil society organizations, the commissioner said that he learned that “obstacles and structural problems continue to hinder Roma inclusion within Greek society, and the full and effective enjoyment of their human rights.”
During field visits to Roma settlements in Thessaloniki and Athens, the commissioner observed residents living in shacks without access to clean water, electricity, sanitation or emergency services. In the Tsairia settlement near Thessaloniki, located near the Thessaloniki international airport, families have lived for over 30 years with no formal infrastructure, exposing them to legal and health risks. A similar pattern was observed in Agia Sofia in Thessaloniki and Halandri in Athens, where poor housing and overcrowding prevail.
Describing the difficulties that families face in such settlements, a woman told the commissioner that “when the children get muddy due to the rain and the absence of proper roads in the settlement, the lack of water supply makes it hard to wash them and their clothes adequately in order to go to school.”
The commissioner acknowledged limited positive steps, such as targeted relocation projects in Halandri and a €15 million government initiative aimed at improving living conditions. However, only 85 of 142 municipalities hosting Roma have submitted required local action plans, and even supportive municipalities face barriers such as insufficient funding and landlord discrimination of Roma seeking to leave settlements.
The memorandum urges Greek authorities to collect reliable data on the Roma population, strengthen implementation of housing and anti-discrimination policies, ensure access to justice, and support independent oversight bodies such as the Ombudsman. It also recommends accelerating compliance with European Court of Human Rights judgments concerning the treatment of Roma.
The publication of the Council of Europe’s report was accompanied by two responses from the Greek authorities. In its reply, the Hellenic Police described itself as a “an undeniably effective institution operating on high standards” that addressed “lawlessness and crime by enforcing the Greek law, while at the same time respecting human rights.” Officers “address with particular care” vulnerable social groups like Roma.”
In relation to the Sampanis shooting, it said the case was pending before the Greek Ombudsman.
In its observations on the commissioner’s report, the Ministry of Social Cohesion and Family said “Roma people do not constitute a minority in Greece. They form an integral part of the Greek population and as Greek citizens they fall within the constitution and the laws of the Greek state. Subsequently, they fully enjoy all civil and political rights entitled to Greek citizens, having the ability to enjoy all economic, social and cultural rights safeguarded for Greek citizens.”
However, it acknowledged that “poor living conditions, poverty and social exclusion define Roma as a social vulnerable group, for which the state takes special measures in order to create the necessary conditions for their social inclusion and prosperity.”
It hailed as an “example of good practice” the successful closure of the Agioi Apostoloi Roma settlement on Rhodes in February of this year, noting that many of its former residents took up seasonal employment in the tourism sector since the Covid-19 pandemic.
Kathimerini
