The report, based on a database complied by OpenDemocracy, found that “countries across Europe have criminalised acts that facilitate illegal immigration”. While some laws are said to be intended to deter human smugglers they are also being used to target “humanitarian actors, including search and rescue boat crews and volunteer lifeguards”. As many as 250 people across 14 countries have been arrested, according to the report. They have been charged or are being investigated under a range of laws passed over the last five years for supporting migrants. Read more here
Source: MEMO