An EU-funded surveillance system for “reception and identification centers” on five Greek islands raises questions about asylum seekers’ privacy and well-being. Despite assurances from European authorities, the Centaur system suggests that mass control, and not shelter, is the priority.
Research for Investigate Europe’s “Council project” revealed that Greece is one of a handful of smaller EU member states blocking a proposed directive in the Council of the EU. The directive aims to improve the gender balance of non-executive directors on company boards. The Greek government denied this, but a breakthrough may be in sight, after our revelations pressed it to take a position.
In the Council of the EU officials from Europe's national governments negotiate laws in secret. This approach to legislating falls short of the democratic standards enshrined in the EU’s own treaty and allows for shady deals behind the backs of voters.
Facebook admitted it made “mistakes” in its content moderation when it suspended the accounts of journalists reporting on a hunger strike by a jailed terrorist in Greece. But when the journalists’ union requested a meeting with the company, they were turned down by Facebook’s PR agency.
In a Reporters United exclusive, technical analysis of mobile phone footage by OSINT group Disinfaux Collective appears to show a police officer throwing a petrol bomb during the recent disturbances in Athens, while a separate video appears to link police with a pro-New Democracy social media account.
Reporters, photojournalists, lawyers and academics commenting on the hunger strike of convicted terrorist Dimitris Koufodinas found their Facebook accounts suspended by the platform. Facebook admitted “mistakes” but failed to provide a full explanation conceding rather magnanimously: “We do allow people to neutrally discuss”.
For another year, Greek shipping has been branded the “top dumper” globally in 2020, for sending the largest number ships to be broken up in unregulated scrap yards on the beaches of South Asia, a practice with a heavy environmental and human cost – which is also illegal under EU law. In the list of ships which the EU classifies as toxic waste, we identified 48 vessels whose former owners include some of the biggest names in Greek shipping.
The Laskaridis brothers are pillars of the Greek shipping establishment. Their charitable foundations sponsor beach clean-ups, Greek heritage projects and the Greek navy. Outside Greece, their shipping businesses have been caught engaging in controversial and polluting practices while using flags of convenience.
Greek police are due to receive gear that allows for real-time face recognition during police patrols. Despite concerns that the system could seriously affect civil liberties, details about the project are scarce.
Desperate North Korean fishermen are washing ashore as skeletons because of the world's largest illegal fleet. The first in a series of investigations by Ian Urbina published exclusively in Greece by Reporters United as part of our collaboration with the Outlaw Ocean Project.
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