Analysis by Amnesty International Greece, published on 9 July 2020 – accessible here
On 29 June 2020, the Greek Minister of Citizen Protection tabled before Parliament a bill that would regulate public assemblies.1 The bill has sparked a heated debate in the Parliament since it was presented, including for the several regulations that would unduly restrict the right to freedom of peaceful assembly.
Amnesty International has analyzed the proposed bill, and raises its serious concerns over several provisions that, if adopted, would constitute an unjustified interference with the right to freedom of peaceful assembly as it is guaranteed in international and regional treaties that Greece is part of, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR). While this statement is not a comprehensive analysis of all provisions of concern, Amnesty International expresses its particular concern over provisions that relate to restrictions on the right to freedom of assembly including notification requirements that result to the dispersal of an assembly, the prohibition of simultaneous assemblies and the regulation of spontaneous assemblies. The organization also expresses its concern over the chilling effect of a provision establishing liability for the organizers of an assembly.
GREECE- AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL STATEMENT ON BILL OF THE MINISTRY OF CITIZEN PROTECTION- ‘PUBLIC OUTDOOR ASSEMBLIES AND OTHER PROVISIONS’