Zakariya, trapped in a legal loop

Zakariya and his two children were pushed back to Turkey, even though they were refugees in Belgium. They smuggled themselves back to Greece, but Belgium refused to grant them a visa because they had lost their address in Belgium, and Greece refused them access to the asylum procedure because they were already recognised refugees in Belgium.

“Zakariya, trapped in a legal loop” is part of the series “Lost in a legal maze: 10+1 stories of asylum seekers in Europe”. This video series explores – perhaps for the first time – the legal difficulties and the legal pitfalls faced by asylum seekers in Greece and Europe, within a legal system designed to fail them. Eleven people at different stages of the asylum procedure talk to the camera about their own cases, revealing with their testimonies the lack of coherence in asylum policy, the high degree of arbitrariness and a systematic attempt to discourage them.

Produced by Heinrich Böll Stiftung – Thessaloniki Office, in collaboration with Equal Legal Aid and directed by Sideris Nanoudis of HomoLudens Productions.

First screening: 13 May 2024, Thessaloniki, Greece