REPORTS
Ombudsman: Pylos investigation concludes there is clear evidence that Greek coast guard officers knowingly exposed migrants to life threatening conditions
On 3 February 2025, the Ombudsman published the results of his investigation into the Pylos shipwreck, concluding that there had been a series of serious and persistent failures in the search and rescue operations by eight senior officers of the Hellenic Coast Guard. There was, the report noted, clear evidence of negligence on the part of the authorities, exposing the passengers of the Adriana to life-threatening conditions, in accordance with Article 306 of the Greek Criminal Code.
This deliberate disregard for the risk to the life, health and physical integrity of the passengers on board the fishing vessel Adriana, according to the Ombudsman’s conclusions, raises the question of the criminal liability of the representatives of a state authority for the offense of exposure (to danger) under Article 306 of the Criminal Code, which stipulates that exposing another person to danger or life-threatening conditions can be punished by up to ten years’ imprisonment if this results in death.
The report analyses in detail the sequence of events leading up to the tragedy in relation to the provisions of the Hellenic Coast Guard’s legal framework as well as the International Convention on Search and Rescue (SAR). The facts are these: the Italian Coast Guard issued an urgent alert at 11:00 am on June 13, 2023, warning that the Adriana was dangerously overloaded with an estimated 750 migrant passengers, which was subsequently confirmed by Frontex. Fifteen hours later the vessel sank, with 104 survivors rescued and 82 bodies recovered.
We note here that the Ombudsman had decided to conduct his own independent investigation into the incident under the competence of the National Mechanism for the Investigation of Arbitrary Incidents following the Coast Guard’s explicit refusal to conduct a disciplinary investigation as requested by the Ombudsman in June 2023.
We also note that the report examines allegations of an attempted towing operation by the Coast Guard, which some claim may have directly contributed to the shipwreck, but the Ombudsman was unable to reach a conclusion on these allegations due to a lack of evidence. According to the Ombudsman, the key to determining responsibility for the shipwreck would be access to the mobile phone of the Coast Guard captain, which is in the possession of the Piraeus Maritime Court and has not been made available to the investigators, as well as the Coast Guard’s radio communications throughout the incident, which were reportedly not recorded, despite legal requirements to do so. Similarly, video footage from the Coast Guard vessel’s onboard cameras was not submitted, with authorities claiming the cameras were “out of order” due to a technical malfunction.
Quite apart from the crimes committed under Article 306 of the Greek Penal Code, the evidence also raises the issue of a violation by the Greek authorities of the national, EU and international framework for the protection of the right to asylum as a fundamental right of refugees in the territory or area of jurisdiction of EU Member States, including Greece.
According to the European Commission, “The European Union is an area of protection for people fleeing persecution or serious harm in their country of origin. Asylum is a fundamental right and an international obligation for countries, as recognised in the 1951 Geneva Convention on the protection of refugees.”
Recognizing the right to asylum, the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees (Geneva Convention), guarantees the rights of refugees in their country of residence and domicile, including the right to movable and immovable property (Article 13), the right of association (Article 15), the right of access to courts (Article 16), the right to work (Articles 17-19), the right to social welfare (Article 20), housing (Article 21) and public education (Article 22), and freedom of movement (Article 26). Furthermore, the Geneva Convention prohibits the expulsion or refoulement of refugees (Article 33).
The Greek Authorities also have specific search and rescue obligations under international and national law, as provided for by international conventions, on the one hand for communication and coordination measures to be adopted in cases of danger to life in the maritime area under their jurisdiction, and on the other hand for rescue measures for those in danger in their coastal areas. In particular, as noted in the Guide of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), the UNHCR and the International Chamber of Shipping, the following conventions impose specific obligations on Greece for the search and rescue of persons in distress, including refugees and migrants:
We also recall that on 21 February 2022, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) made a public statement expressing its deep concern about the increasing number of incidents of violence and serious human rights violations against refugees and migrants taking place at the borders of several European countries, several of which have led to tragic loss of life.
Referring specifically to Greece the UNHCR expressed its alarm at “recurrent and consistent reports coming from Greece’s land and sea borders with Turkey, where UNHCR has recorded almost 540 reported incidents of informal returns by Greece since the beginning of 2020. At sea, people report being left adrift in life rafts or sometimes even forced directly into the water, showing a callous lack of regard for human life. At least three people are reported to have died in such incidents since September 2021 in the Aegean Sea, including one in January. Equally horrific practices are frequently reported at land borders, with consistent testimonies of people being stripped and brutally pushed back in harsh weather conditions.”
Under the rule of law, the authorities must apply international law with regard to persons in distress at sea, as well as for the international protection of refugees from war, illiberal and undemocratic regimes and other risks in their countries of origin, by refraining from the illegal acts of expulsion or refoulement of asylum seekers.
As the UNHCR has noted, European law requires that border surveillance measures must be implemented in full compliance with human rights and refugee law, including the 1951 Convention.
However, in this case, the Ombudsman’s finding on the Pylos shipwreck points to the criminal liability of eight senior coast guard officers for the offence of exposure to danger of other persons, under Article 306 of the Penal Code, as well as the more general issue of the Greek authorities’ failure to apply the international, European Union and national framework of obligations for the rescue and international protection of the persons on board the Adriana.
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