Arrivals, reception, and solidarity on the two Greek islands

Since 2020, Operazione Colomba-APG23 has been supporting people on the move in Greece through direct presence and monitoring of Human Rights.
This Report is the result of a monitoring trip carried out to verify reception conditions on the Greek islands of Crete and Gavdos. For about a year, these islands have become new landing destinations for people departing from eastern Libya to reach the European Union.

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A stunning city: the port with its grain silos ready to depart for the world, the Potemkin Stairs, the city’s symbol overlooking the sea; the tree-lined avenues; people in the streets trying to live; small venues playing music - most often Italian - Battiato, Mina, Celentano… buildings that carry memory, the National Theatre Academy, the great central boulevards steeped in history, the majestic train station. It all feels so far from the war… but it isn’t. Last night the alarms, the usual alarms, and explosions toward the sea, nearby.

And then again, on the road that connects San José to the city of Apartadó, a rope has been raised. You are let through only after paying a toll, with the promise that the money collected will be used to repair the condition of the road, which is now almost impassable.

This is a method that has already been used, these are promises that have already been made, words that have already fallen into the void in the past. Perhaps it is a sign that power over the territory is held by someone who obtains it through force, without respecting any law, written or moral. Faced with this unjust imposition, people silently accept it. Everything goes on as if nothing ever happened. Some still believe in these false promises, others don’t want any trouble, some others fear the consequences, and then there are those who simply want to survive.

“We have the right to exist as a community, and we will continue to defend it.” On 29 October 2025, at the 5th Meeting, 12th Session of the Expert Mechanism on the Right to Development of the United Nations in Geneva, José Roviro López, from the Peace Community of San José de Apartadó (Colombia), brought the voice of those who resist violence, the pressure of economic enterprises, and the destruction of land and nature. Roviro reminded everyone that the right to development cannot be imposed from above. It is born from the communities that defend the land, the water, native seeds, memory, education, and the possibility of living in peace. Despite 28 years of threats and attacks, the Peace Community continues to build alternative models of coexistence and agriculture, far from the logic of war and exploitation. Operazione Colomba has accompanied the Peace Community in Colombia for more than 15 years. To listen to all the speeches from the meeting:
https://webtv.un.org/en/asset/k1n/k1nkn3fy8z