Criminalising Solidarity: An Attack on All of Us.
Solidarity with others facing criminalization for their acts of solidarity was central to us. We showed up at their trials, and often put their stories at the heart of our own narrative. We wanted to share knowledge, resources, and attention.
Individuals, groups and organisations working to ensure access to fundamental rights regardless of legal status are increasingly targeted by policies of deterrence and exclusion. As a result, life-saving rescue at sea can be treated as facilitating irregular entry, while providing food, shelter or other forms of support becomes grounds for suspicion or prosecution.
Over the last years, several hundred individuals have been put on trial in Europe for their solidarity – they helped people on the move to arrive in cities, handed out food in the cold, saved lives at sea. Some of them, like Captain Carola Rackete or the mayor of Riace, Mimmo Lucano, became famous for their actions.
Under the banner of the “fight against smuggling”, European states have expanded policing and legal measures against those who act in solidarity with people on the move. Rescue ships are prevented from leaving port, social centres are raided or closed, and activists face detention, prosecution and years-long court proceedings. Firefighters, priests, lawyers, nurses, students and volunteers are among the many people criminalised in recent years for assisting migrants and asylum seekers.
Documenting the criminalisation of solidarity, year by year
PICUM (Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants) has tracked this pattern systematically since 2015, through media monitoring across the EU:
- 2015–2019: at least 171 people charged with facilitation of irregular entry, transit or stay across 13 EU member states
- January 2021 – March 2022: at least 89 people criminalised; 88% charged with facilitation or smuggling; of those with a verdict, 3 convicted, 15 acquitted
- 2022: at least 102 people faced criminal or administrative proceedings for acts of solidarity
- 2023: at least 117 people faced judicial proceedings; over 80% charged with "smuggling" or "facilitation" despite humanitarian intent; 88 criminalised specifically for rescuing or helping people in distress at sea
- 2025: at least 110 people criminalised across the EU — for sea rescue, civil disobedience, legal aid, or simply providing food, water and shelter
Highest case numbers by country: Greece (62), Italy (29), Poland (17).
"It's quite a dystopic reality that in today's Europe, one can face trial and fines and even prison simply for helping others in need. The criminalisation of solidarity is the logical extension of policies that punish migration and migrants in the first place."
The numbers tell the same story the Iuventa case tells, repeated dozens of times a year: charges filed, years pass, most cases end in acquittal or are dropped.
But this should not be about us – privileged Europeans. By far, most people arrested on charges of “aiding unauthorized immigration” are people on the move themselves. Their crime? Leaving their home in search of a safe place – for themselves, their families, friends and fellows. Their charges are the same as ours. Only, they face lifelong prison sentences and detention, they do not have a lobby and barely any elementary legal protection. Most are on their own as family and friends are either far away or are being deprived of their rights themselves and thus unable to support.
We need to talk about these cases and end this injustice! That's why we point to De:criminalize!
We find lawyers, are in contact with families, provide support for people in prison and accompany and document cases and court proceedings. We also organize public relations work and campaigns.
Sources
Resilience and Resistance: The Criminalisation of Solidarity Across Europe (PICUM, 2022)
Over 100 People Criminalised for Helping Migrants in the EU in 2022 (PICUM)
Criminalisation of Solidarity with Migrants in the EU — 2025 Report (PICUM/ISMU)