On many EU borders, including the one between Greece and Turkey, pushbacks have long been happening systematically on a daily basis. Basic human rights are continuously violated through the enactment and continuation of these pushbacks. We often say that pushbacks are illegal, but which laws exactly are being violated?
Any pushback is a violation of human rights according to Art. 14 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the right to seek asylum. Due to their brutal nature, pushbacks also violate many other articles of the UDHR, including Art. 3, the right to life, liberty and security of person, Art. 5 which states that noone should be “subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment”, and Art. 9 which addresses arbitrary arrest and detention.
Pushbacks violate the principle of Non-Refoulement (art. 32, 33)of the 1951 Geneva Convention which constitutes the cornerstone of international refugee protection.The principle clearly forbids states from returning anyone to a state where their life or freedom would be in danger. On the EU’s external borders, for example with Turkey or Libya, this is definitely the case. Within the EU, it either subjects them to chain pushbacks to unsafe third countries, or returns them to a country where they risk facing deportation to their country of origin. There is no internationally upheld legal definition of a ‘pushback’ as of yet, but it is generally understood as a violation of the rule of non-refoulement and thus presents a violation of international law.
The 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and the 1979 International Convention on Maritime Search and Rescue both outline that every captain is obliged to provide help to people in distress, no matter who or for what reason. The Conventions are incomplete in regards to what happens to the rescued. “However, international law requires that rescuees should only be disembarked in a safe port”, and the principle of non- refoulement applies here as well.
The principle of non-refoulement can be found in adopted EU legislation, for example in Article 18 and Article 19 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of European Union, as well as in Directive 2013/32/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council on common procedures for granting and withdrawing international protection. Thus, EU member states have to comply to double the international standards on protecting refugees: they are signatories to the 1951 Geneva Convention as well as obliged to adhere to EU principles and regulations on asylum. EU member states must adopt EU legislation into their national laws and thus, pushbacks violate three levels of law: national, EU and International.
When a pushback is committed, it puts people at risk of being returned to a country where they will be subjected to torture and inhumane treatment, along with other serious rights violations. Pushbacks breach the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, the European Convention on Human Rights as well as the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT).
On many EU borders, including the one between Greece and Turkey, pushbacks have long been happening systematically on a daily basis. Basic human rights are continuously violated through the enactment and continuation of these pushbacks. We often say that pushbacks are illegal, but which laws exactly are being violated?
Any pushback is a violation of human rights according to Art. 14 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the right to seek asylum. Due to their brutal nature, pushbacks also violate many other articles of the UDHR, including Art. 3, the right to life, liberty and security of person, Art. 5 which states that noone should be “subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment”, and Art. 9 which addresses arbitrary arrest and detention.
Pushbacks violate the principle of Non-Refoulement (art. 32, 33)of the 1951 Geneva Convention which constitutes the cornerstone of international refugee protection.The principle clearly forbids states from returning anyone to a state where their life or freedom would be in danger. On the EU’s external borders, for example with Turkey or Libya, this is definitely the case. Within the EU, it either subjects them to chain pushbacks to unsafe third countries, or returns them to a country where they risk facing deportation to their country of origin. There is no internationally upheld legal definition of a ‘pushback’ as of yet, but it is generally understood as a violation of the rule of non-refoulement and thus presents a violation of international law.
The 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and the 1979 International Convention on Maritime Search and Rescue both outline that every captain is obliged to provide help to people in distress, no matter who or for what reason. The Conventions are incomplete in regards to what happens to the rescued. “However, international law requires that rescuees should only be disembarked in a safe port”, and the principle of non- refoulement applies here as well.
The principle of non-refoulement can be found in adopted EU legislation, for example in Article 18 and Article 19 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of European Union, as well as in Directive 2013/32/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council on common procedures for granting and withdrawing international protection. Thus, EU member states have to comply to double the international standards on protecting refugees: they are signatories to the 1951 Geneva Convention as well as obliged to adhere to EU principles and regulations on asylum. EU member states must adopt EU legislation into their national laws and thus, pushbacks violate three levels of law: national, EU and International.
When a pushback is committed, it puts people at risk of being returned to a country where they will be subjected to torture and inhumane treatment, along with other serious rights violations. Pushbacks breach the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, the European Convention on Human Rights as well as the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CPT).
