Greece’s Minister for Migration and Asylum, Makis Voridis, has announced a sweeping new approach to illegal immigration in Greece, declaring that undocumented migrants who refuse to leave the country after their asylum applications are rejected should face jail time or extended detention.
Speaking on Greek television on Saturday, Voridis outlined a doctrine that puts forced deportations and up to two years of detention at the center of Greece’s migration policy. “Anyone who is in the country illegally must be punished and effectively so. This means imprisonment or administrative detention, which can be suspended if the person decides to leave the country voluntarily,” Voridis said, emphasizing that illegal migrants cannot stay in Greece or elsewhere in the European Union.
With the EU facing waves of illegal migration on several fronts, the European Commission is preparing a new migration framework, not far from the Greek minister’s approach, that those not entitled to asylum are considered illegal and must be repatriated. The proposed EU plan, set to be presented to the European Parliament soon, will reportedly include forced deportations, incentives for voluntary departures and stricter measures against countries that refuse to take back their nationals.
The EU is mulling raising the penalties for those migrants who refuse to leave the Union voluntarily, with people now facing 24-months of detention rather than a maximum of 18 now. They will also lose most –if not all– access to benefits of the welfare system of the member-state they are in and they could even face identity documents confiscation and other penalties.
Greece’s Migration minister defended these proposed measures as necessary to restore credibility to Europe’s migration system, noting that only two out of every ten illegal immigrants are currently deported from the EU, while the rest often remain and move freely among member states. “The urgent need is to establish a unified, common, and mandatory framework for all member states that will decisively correct the negative balance between illegal immigrant inflows and deportations,” he said.
Greece’s hardline stance, including the minister’s recent statement that migrants who refuse to leave after their asylum is rejected will face jail, comes amid renewed international criticism over alleged pushbacks and forced returns to Turkey at the country’s borders.
Europe’s top human rights official has urged Athens to strengthen legal safeguards and end informal forced returns, warning that such practices violate human rights conventions. Voridis, however, maintains that Greece’s border control measures comply with international law and insists that the new policies are designed to encourage voluntary departure while ensuring that those who remain illegally face consequences.
The minister also highlighted the importance of cooperation with countries of origin, stating that Greece and the EU will impose visa restrictions and other sanctions on nations that refuse to accept the return of their citizens who have illegally entered the EU.
As the debate over migration intensifies across Europe, Voridis’ doctrine signals a further shift towards stricter enforcement and a more unified EU approach to managing undocumented migration.
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