Migrant rights defenders in Greece treated like criminals, says UN expert

FILE PHOTO: Pope Francis visits the island of Lesbos to meet with the the refugees and migrants at the Mavrovouni camp, Greece, December 5, 2021. Vatican Media/Handout via REUTERS

ATHENS (Reuters) - Human rights defenders in Greece, particularly those documenting the treatment of migrants and refugees, face smear campaigns and are treated like criminals, U.N. Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders Mary Lawlor said on Wednesday.

Lawlor was presenting her preliminary findings at the end of a 10-day visit to Greece where she met ministers in Athens and also visited the islands of Lesbos, Chios and Samos which were on the frontline of Europe's migration crisis in 2015 and 2016.