By the STAIKOU DIMITRA

(FREELANCE JOURNALIST , PROFESSIONAL WRITER ABOUT INDIA,PAKISTAN,BANGLADESH
,CHINA AND MIDDLE EAST IN GREEK AND INTERNATIONAL PRESS)

On September 3, 2025, the Greek government passed a new strict legislative framework on immigration, which particularly affects the Pakistani community. The law provides for imprisonment of 2 to 5 years and a fine of up to €10,000 for migrants who do not return to their country within 14 days after their asylum application has been rejected. In addition, the period of detention is increased from 18 to 24 months and the possibility of legalization is abolished for immigrants who have been living in the country without documents for more than 7 years.

The Ministry of Migration, through Thanos Plevris, emphasized the priority of Greek citizens’ rights over those who are not entitled to asylum. However, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) expressed concerns that the new law could actually harm those who are entitled to international protection. He called for the implementation of “immediate procedures” to quickly distinguish between refugees and others. The Greek state has already returned hundreds of migrants on organized flights, with the aim of returning them to Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Egypt. Humanitarian organizations accuse Greece of returning migrants who do not have the necessary legal documents, while Frontex is investigating 12 possible cases of rights violations.

A protest against the Greek government’s bill aimed at curbing illegal immigration was organized by KEERFA (United Movement Against Racism and the Fascist Threat), an organization known for its support of refugees and immigrants, on September 3, 2025, at 7:00 p.m. in front of the National Assembly, where Pakistani illegal immigrants took the lead.

KEERFA (Movement Against Racism and the Fascist Threat) has expressed strong opposition to the new legislative framework on immigration in Greece, which particularly affects the Pakistani community. KEERFA argues that the new law intensifies discrimination and racist practices against immigrants, while reinforcing police arbitrariness and repressive policies.

In response to these developments, KEERFA has organized and supported demonstrations and protests, such as the march on 12 October 2024 in Athens, following the death of Pakistani migrant Mohammad Kamran Asik in a police station. KEERFA accused the police of attempting to cover up the incident and called for the resignation of those responsible. In addition, KEERFA supports the protesters’ basic demands, such as maintaining the 7- and 3-year immigration laws, providing legal documents to foreign workers, closing detention centers, and granting asylum to refugees.

The Pakistani diaspora in Greece seems to be directly affected by the new immigration bill, as—according to data from the Ministry of Immigration—the largest percentage of irregular immigrants in the country come from Pakistan.

Fearing repatriation after the law was passed, the Pakistani Community of Greece Unity (PCGU), led by Javed Aslam Arian, in collaboration with left-wing parties, called on members of the Pakistani diaspora to participate in the protest organized by KEERFA (Movement United Against Racism and the Fascist Threat). KEERFA released a poster emphasizing that “the Pakistani community is with us in protest,” creating a united front. The protesters’ main demands were the retention of the 7- and 3-year immigration laws, so that those who have been living in the country for a long time can continue to obtain legal status through documentation, the provision of legal documents for foreign workers living and working in Greece, the closure of immigration detention centers, and the provision of asylum to refugees who are suffering and have a genuine need for international protection.

We must now examine how Greece’s different political factions interpret the issue of immigrants and what stance they take towards them. Makis Voridis, former Minister of Migration in the Mitsotakis government, has been highly critical of Pakistani immigrants in Greece, focusing mainly on issues of irregular migration and security. In an interview with SKAI TV in May 2025, he stated: “From now on, anyone who is in Greece illegally will never be legalized, will never obtain a residence permit.” This statement reflects the Mitsotakis government’s tough policy towards Pakistani immigrants, who constitute the largest group of irregular immigrants in Greece.

Zoe Konstantopoulou, leader of the Freedom Movement party, has expressed strong opposition to the Greek government’s recent legislative initiatives on immigration, which particularly affect the Pakistani community. On July 11, 2025, during a debate in parliament on a new bill criminalizing the stay of migrants without asylum, Konstantopoulou filed an objection on the grounds of unconstitutionality, describing the bill as a “legal framework for racism” and accusing the government of “destroying asylum” and “portraying asylum seekers as serious criminals.”

Konstantopoulou accused the government of promoting policies reminiscent of the Orbán regime in Hungary, abandoning humanitarian values and reinforcing the rhetoric of racism and xenophobia. Furthermore, she argued that these policies encourage the rise of the far right and the fascist threat in the country.

On its front page shortly before the TIF, the newspaper Avgi, the official newspaper of Syriza, warns: refugees are “paying the price” for immigration due to right-wing concessions to the far right, calling for the withdrawal of the bill that “adopts far-right practices.”  while the left-wing newspaper Syntachtes’s newspaper, in an article entitled “The bill criminalizes refugees and immigration”, criticizes the legislation with the official slogan “Imprisonment or Deportation”. It emphasizes that the framework intensifies repression, threatens to create social chaos, and leaves thousands of people without access to asylum or legal In my personal opinion, the issue of immigrants, which is currently a hot potato in the hands of the government, cannot be examined in a simplistic manner because it is taking place at such a difficult economic and social juncture for the Greek people that it has prompted Elon Musk to tweet about our country that Greece is currently dying, as 700 Greek schools will remain closed due to a lack of students.

When discussing the issue of migrant management, we must take into account who the active working population of Greece as a host country is, how much it will be affected by the influx of immigrants, and to what extent these immigrants are willing to integrate culturally into Greece. In the case of immigrants from Pakistan, we must not overlook the fact that these are people with a low level of education who could mainly do 5manual labor and who have such deep religious prejudices of Islam within them which makes their cultural integration into Greece as a host country almost impossible.support.

Neighboring Italy, under the government of Giorgia Meloni, has implemented strict immigration policies, including restrictions on rescue operations in the Mediterranean and agreements with countries such as Libya to prevent departures. However, at the same time, it has approved the “Flow Decree” for the period 2026–2028, which increases the granting of work permits for immigrants, including workers from Pakistan, with the aim of filling gaps in the labor market. In addition, Italy has signed agreements with Pakistan and Bangladesh to combat irregular migration and human trafficking.

The European Pact on Migration and Asylum (2024): provides for mechanisms for distributing asylum seekers according to each member state’s GDP, population, and the degree of pressure it already faces (e.g., frontline countries). Under the new European Pact, Greece could accept a lower percentage of Pakistani immigrants than Germany or France, due to its smaller GDP and population. Therefore, the latest bill to combat illegal immigration is considered necessary, even if it seems harsh, as it brings to mind the example of passengers on an airplane in a crisis situation, where each passenger must first put on their own oxygen mask before helping their weaker neighbor.