“Jail or deportation”: The new tough reality for migrants and refugees on the island of Crete

Photo Credits: Thomas van de Water

“[In] my opinion, the migration [issue] can be solved in two ways, which should be clearly stated. The first is guarding the borders, and to make this clear, guarding the borders cannot be conceived without casualties, and to make myself understood, if there are not any dead [persons]. Guarding the borders means having dead [people].” These are the words of Thanos Plevris, the new Minister for Migration and Asylum of the Hellenic Republic, spoken at a public event organized by the nationalist magazine “Patria” back in 2011. Such comments reveal Plevris’ stance on migrants and refugees, which he will now have the opportunity to communicate to a wider audience from an institutional position.

Change of guard at the Ministry of Migration and Asylum

His predecessor, Makis Voridis, whose trajectory we have covered in our previous blog post, unexpectedly resigned from his post due to his involvement in a financial scandal regarding agricultural subsidies illegally given to farmers through the governmental agency OPEKEPE. According to the latest reports, the European Public Prosecutor’s Office is investigating how millions of euros were paid out to applicants who should not have received the subsidies, with examples including financial support for non-existent cattle on the island of Crete and banana plantations (!) on Mount Olympus, Greece’s highest mountain. Voridis’ name figures prominently in the investigation reports of the prosecutor, who is examining whether the former minister and others have committed a felony through approving  the subsidies, in order to help the ruling New Democracy party gain potential voters.

The move by Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis to appoint Plevris as minister signifies an even tougher stance on migration policy. This is confirmed not only through rhetoric, but also through the latest policy enacted. In just the last few weeks, the Hellenic Parliament has voted to suspend the asylum applications submitted by people arriving from North Africa, and Plevris has publicly stated his intention to slash in half the financial aid registered refugees receive, going as far as to claim that they will “no longer live as if in a hotel”.

Hostile policies and harsh rhetoric

According to estimates by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), more than seven thousand people have reached Crete since the beginning of this year. Most of the refugees and migrants have arrived via the Tobruk-to-Crete route, with many of them fleeing the civil war in Sudan. They have been rescued by the Hellenic Coast Guard in the vicinity of Gavdos, a small island located to the south of Crete, and have subsequently been transported to the larger island.

Instead of ensuring adequate accommodation for the newly arrived refugees, the Greek government has decided to move in the opposite direction. On 11 July 2025, it voted 177-74 to suspend asylum applications for people arriving from North Africa for a period of 3 months, with the amendment being supported by far-right parties represented in the parliament as well as far-right independent politicians. Even the official amendment text itself speaks of “irregular arrivals” and characterizes the present situation as an “asymmetrical threat”,  fully adopting the anti-migrant rhetoric of the far-right. The legislation has been criticized by international and national human rights groups, which underline that it contravenes the 1951 UN Refugees Convention, the European Convention on Human Rights, and a plethora of other international treaties and conventions. It can be renewed after the initial 3-month period.

The lack of proper preparation has been accompanied by a flurry of racist and anti-migrant rhetoric from the government. A recent report by the Racist Violence Recording Network, which is supported by the National Committee for Human Rights, has confirmed an increase of derogatory terms such as “clandestine immigrants” and “invaders”, with Mr. Plevris himself describing the situation in front of lawmakers as “resembling an invasion”. The Network further points out that the rising tide of racism and xenophobia comes hand in hand with a lack of human-centered approaches and adequate preparation toward issues, which ultimately affects both people on the move and local communities.

Grim circumstances

The situation of the refugees and migrants is dire, to say the least. People are being temporarily sheltered in abandoned warehouses and industrial buildings without adequate heating in the Ports of Heraklion and Rethymno, sleeping directly on concrete floors, with limited access to sanitary facilities and food provisions. At the beginning of July, 450 newly rescued refugees were forced amidst a heatwave to sleep on top of the breakwater at Rethymno, without even the most basic means of subsistence. Photos reveal people lying on the hot floor of the port without any shade, next to dirty water and trash bins. At the same time, authorities of the local administration such as Mayor of Rethymno Georgios Marinakis, have insisted that it is neither the job nor the responsibility of the local government to solve the issue, instead blaming the smugglers for deceiving refugees by “promising them a better future”. 

According to Head of the UNHCR office in Greece, Maria Clara Martin, about one third of the people arriving on Crete are fleeing the war in Sudan and, more specifically, fleeing from forced conscription and other atrocities. As such, it is evident that they are abandoning their homelands due to serious threats against their lives, within a context of armed conflict. As she succinctly points out, “We need to accept a fundamental truth: people will keep moving around as long as there are wars, violations of human rights, violence, insecurity and deep inequalities."

Nevertheless, while speaking to the press before an informal meeting of European migration ministers in Copenhagen, Mr. Plevris made clear that people whose asylum applications are rejected will face between 2 and 5 years in prison. When asked whether the European legislation should be changed, he characterized this issue as a “challenge” but reiterated his position that the current situation is unmanageable. He concluded by saying that in the end, refugees and migrants face two options: “jail, or return”. 

Future developments

At present, the situation remains unchanged. In a search for short-term solutions, the government has resorted to transporting refugees and migrants to mainland Greece through long sea voyages with heavy police presence. It has been reported that over 300 refugees have been transported from Crete’s port, Souda, to the port of Kavala in northern Greece with a transport boat of the Hellenic Navy. Notably, the journey lasted more than 30 hours, with many people being crammed on the lower decks of the boat without proper ventilation or even sunlight. Many refugees faced respiratory problems, and some people even lost consciousness. Nonetheless, Minister of Citizen Protection Mihalis Chrysochoidis has said the transports will continue as planned, and the only change that will be made in the future will be the replacement of the navy boat with a civilian one.

Therefore, it seems that the Greek government will continue denying refugees and people on the move their basic human rights, treating them as threats to public safety in the process.  Yet, as Mrs. Martin reminds us: “Nobody risks their lives at sea just to receive food or basic aid. People flee because they live in desperate circumstances”. It is time for Greek and European governments to finally heed these words and reverse their anti-migrant and anti-refugee policies.