Greece’s Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis had a fiery exchange with Dutch journalist Ingeborg Beugel yesterday who questioned the country’s treatment of refugees and accused Greece of illegal pushbacks.
The exchange took place during a joint press conference with Mitsotakis and the Prime Minister of the Netherlands Mark Rutte, following their meeting in Athens on Tuesday.
Four months ago Beugel was detained for ‘facilitating the illegal stay of a foreigner’ and could face up to a year in jail.
Beugel’s court date is yet to be announced after it was postponed because of coronavirus restrictions.
Ingeborg Beugel, 61, a freelance correspondent for the Dutch media who has lived on Hydra for almost 40 years, was arrested on 13 June accused of “facilitating the illegal stay of a foreigner in Greece”.
The charge carries a 12-month prison sentence and a fine of €5,000 (£4,300).
Beugel said she was arrested after islanders alerted police to the presence of Fridoon*, a 23-year-old asylum seeker from Afghanistan. Fridoon had been staying with Beugel while appealing against a negative asylum decision.
Beugel said that Fridoon’s original application for asylum in Greece was rejected because of translation problems at his interview.
“He’s been unable to get an appointment with the Greek asylum service. He’s been calling for months and hasn’t received an answer,” said Beugel.
“Several angry islanders had called them [the police] saying that I had a ‘suspect’ relationship with an ‘illegal’ in my house,” Beugel added.
