Non-governmental organizations that work with refugees and migrants in Greece were given 10 days on Tuesday to register with the Citizen Protection Ministry, or risk being banned from operating in the country.
The national register of Greek and foreign NGOs dealing with international protection, migration and social integration issues – as it is officially called – was initiated by the previous SYRIZA government in October 2018 and states that registering with the authorities is a “necessary precondition” to be accredited by the ministry and continue to work in the country.
Currently, several ministries have their own lists with NGOs but there is no central registry.
Two days ago, the country’s anti-money laundering authority, led by Supreme Court deputy prosecutor Anna Zairi, started compiling its own list of registered NGOs, with the aim of auditing them.
The authority wants to investigate possible illegal financial transactions that would point to money laundering.