Karim* was born in Afghanistan. As a teenager, he had to flee his home country together with his family because of discrimination and threats to his safety. After a challenging journey to Greece, ELIL supported him in his asylum procedure.
In Afghanistan, Karim was facing discrimination due to his ethnicity, which limited his education and job opportunities. He also faced religious repression and the risk of persecution because of his beliefs. After he received threats from the Taliban that put his life in danger, he saw no prospects for a safe future in their home country and left to find safety elsewhere.
During his journey to Greece, Karim faced multiple forms of hardship. Following his border crossing attempts to enter Türkiye, he was arrested and was subjected to violence and inhumane conditions in detention. In Türkiye, Karim had to stay undocumented against his will and consequently, he was deprived of his rights to health care, education and lawful employment. Forced by the conditions, Karim eventually crossed the border and applied for international protection in Greece.
With the help of ELIL, Karim prepared carefully for his interview. In the preparation sessions, our lawyer explained his rights and duties in the first-instance interview and guided him on what to emphasise on. On the day of the interview, an ELIL lawyer accompanied and represented him.
After the interview, as a standard measure, the lawyer requested a copy of the interview recording from the asylum service. Together with our interpretation team at ELIL, the lawyer discovered multiple interpretation errors that put the accurate understanding of Karim’s story at risk. To limit the possible impact of these mistakes, our lawyer submitted a memorandum to the asylum service, correcting the errors and stressing the importance of the applicant’s right to adequate interpretation.
Our work was successful. Today, Karim is a recognised refugee in Greece, with the right to work, study and access healthcare. Most importantly, he can start a new chapter without fear.
*Name and identifying details have been changed for protection reasons.