CCPR/C/113/D/2523/2015
Decision on admissibility*
1.1
The author of the communication is Mr. X, a Syrian citizen of Kurdish origin born
in 1977. He claims that his deportation to Greece would constitute a violation, by Denmark,
of his rights under article 7 of the Covenant. The author is represented by counsel.
1.2
On 9 January 2015, the Committee, acting through its Special Rapporteur on new
communications and interim measures, decided not to issue a request for interim measures
under rule 92 of the Committee’s rules of procedure, and determined that no observations
from the State party were needed to ascertain the admissibility of the present
communication.
The facts as presented by the author
2.1
The author is from Maydanke, Afrin, Syrian Arab Republic and is of Kurdish
ethnicity. In 2007, he went to Greece from the Syrian Arab Republic and applied for
asylum. He was issued a residence permit. He states that he was registered as an asylum
seeker, but that he is not sure whether he was granted international protection in Greece .1
The author resided in Greece from 2007 to 2010. In 2010, he returned to the Syrian Arab
Republic.
2.2
In February 2014, the author left the Syrian Arab Republic and, having travelled
through Turkey, returned to Greece. He stayed with friends and other people of Kurdish
ethnicity, and occasionally in the Lavrio refugee camp with friends, not far from Athens. In
Greece, the author paid 1,000 euros to an intermediary who assisted him in getting a
residence permit faster.2 The author explains that with this permit, he travelled to Denmark
to visit friends. He travelled through Norway on 14 August 2014, and was apprehended at
the Norwegian international airport. He was transferred back to Greece on 15 August 2014,
after having failed to explain the purpose for his arrival in Norway.
2.3
On 18 or 19 August 2014, the author was assaulted in Athens by eight or nine men
affiliated with the Greek right-wing party Golden Dawn.3 He was beaten severely by the
men, who shouted xenophobic phrases, such as “you foreigners have ruined our country”
and “everything is your fault”. The men tore his residence permit. They took pictures of
him, and stated that next time they would kill him. The next morning, he went to the Attica
police station in Athens to report the assault and the death threats. However, the police filed
no report and even though the author was severely bruised, he was told that he would get no
assistance. Due to the threats to his life, the author stayed indoors until he fled Greece with
the assistance of an agent, about one week after the assault.
2.4
On 30 August 2014, the author arrived in Denmark and applied for asylum. As a
reason for his request, he invoked the fact that he had been re-drafted for military service in
* The following members of the Committee participated in the consideration of the present
1
2
3
2
communication: Yadh Ben Achour, Lazhari Bouzid, Sarah Cleveland, Olivier de Frouville,
Yuji Iwasawa, Ivana Jelić, Duncan Muhumuza Laki, Photini Pazartzis, Mauro Politi, Sir Nigel
Rodley, Victor Manuel Rodríguez-Rescia, Fabián Omar Salvioli, Dheerujlall Seetulsingh,
Anja Seibert-Fohr, Yuval Shany, Konstantine Vardzelashvili and Margo Waterval.
According to the information provided in the submission, the Danish Immigration Service received a
confirmation from Greece that the author had been granted refugee status in Greece (the date is not
specified).
The new residence permit, valid as of June 2014, issued in August 2014, does not indicate the
grounds on which it was issued. It is also unclear until when it is valid, as there is an error in the date.
The author stated that assaults by people affiliated with Golden Dawn against refugees and other
foreigners are widespread in Greece, and that they often occur without police interference.