Trafficked from Nepal, migrant workers prosecuted while Greek employers escape scrutiny
BHRRC
When a 25-year-old man from Nepal walked into Greece’s organized crime police unit in Athens in January 2024, he said he had escaped forced labor in the strawberry fields of Manolada, a major agricultural hub in western Greece long associated with labor exploitation. He asked investigators to hold those responsible accountable...
On January 5, 2024, the young Nepali man gave his first statement with the help of an interpreter. It had been nearly six weeks since he escaped from the greenhouses of Manolada, where he said he had lived and worked for two months in degrading conditions.
He had been led there through a WhatsApp contact with a woman from Nepal, who, he had heard, helped compatriots find jobs in Greece. Their communication took place while he was in Romania...
...the promises of legal and well-paid work proved to be false: he was robbed at gunpoint, his passport was confiscated and he was forced to work without pay...
Recruitment continues digitally, through TikTok and WhatsApp...
Police records reviewed by Solomon show the vehicle belonged to a manager of TAKTIKOS FRUITS S.A., which describes itself as “the leading strawberry wholesale company in Greece.” ...
The company did not respond to questions from Solomon about recruitment practices or safeguards against forced labor...