card continued to be generally prevented work rescuing and assisting refugees. The from exiting. The reception conditions in the trial was adjourned and the matter referred to temporary camp of Mavrovouni on Lesvos, a higher court; the investigation into the where the displaced residents of Moria had remaining charges against the group been living since the fires, remained a cause remained pending. for concern. FREEDOM OF ASSEMBLY CHILDREN’S RIGHTS In January, the European Committee of Social Greek authorities failed to facilitate, and Rights found Greece to be in violation of continued to unlawfully interfere with, the several provisions of the European Social right to freedom of peaceful assembly.2 In Charter. The decision focused on the late January, the head of police introduced a inappropriate accommodation provided for blanket ban on public outdoor assemblies of accompanied and unaccompanied migrant more than 100 people citing public health and asylum-seeking children and the failure grounds. Several peaceful assemblies were to ensure their protection from harm. The dispersed by the Greek police throughout the committee also found violations in relation to year. Greece’s guardianship system, the detention DISCRIMINATION of unaccompanied migrant children in “protective custody”, the failure to provide In April, the Racist Violence Recording formal education to children on the Network reported 107 incidents of racist islands and the right to health. violence as recorded in 2020. Between RIGHT TO HEALTH August and October, hate crimes by NGOs campaigning for the opening of access members of far-right groups and other to Covid-19 vaccines for undocumented individuals against migrants, students and people reported persisting challenges. A legal members of political parties were reported in provision adopted in October expanded the Crete, Athens and Thessaloniki. possibilities for undocumented migrants to register for Covid-19 vaccination and obtain CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTORS’ RIGHTS the relevant certificate, and introduced Serious violations of the rights of safeguards against deportation. In December, conscientious objectors to military service a Ministerial Decision allowed civil society continued, including repeated prosecutions, actors to administer Covid-19 vaccines to fines and arrests. Appeals to the Supreme vulnerable people including those who are Administrative Court against the undocumented. discriminatory rejection of applications for HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS conscientious objector status were pending at the end of the year. The UN Human Rights In March, three UN Special Rapporteurs Committee raised questions over the rights of expressed concerns over new restrictive conscientious objectors – and the punitive registration requirements introduced in 2020 and discriminatory “alternative service” – to for NGOs working with migrants and be considered in the next periodic report of refugees. Greece. Greece also received In November, years after their initial arrest recommendations on the issue in the context and release on bail in 2018, human rights of the UPR. defenders Sarah Mardini and Séan Binder In a landmark ruling in December, the UN together with 22 other members of the NGO Human Rights Committee found multiple Emergency Response Centre International, violations of the ICCPR in the case of faced trial in Lesvos on some of the charges conscientious objector Lazaros Petromelidis. brought against them. These included charges of espionage, unlawful use of radio frequencies and forgery arising from their Amnesty International Report 2021/22 180