Volunteers and citizens have been criminalised for helping migrants and refugees across Europe. Research indicates that between 2015 and 2019, at least 171 people have been investigated or prosecuted in 13 European countries for providing humanitarian assistance at sea or providing shelter to migrants and refugees at their homes.
This webinar provides a unique opportunity to hear the personal testimonies of people who have been facing criminal prosecutions as well as views from researchers and advocacy organisations. Why is solidarity conflated with a crime? How did the situation escalate? Furthermore, what can be done to protect the right to help? Hear from humanitarian volunteer Sean Binder and journalist Anouk Van Getsel to unpick the accusations. Researchers from CEPS and the Migration Policy Group as well as advocates from Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants (PICUM) will provide an overview of the criminalisation and their key recommendations.
