“(…) here I have freedom”—A study of refugees' and asylum seekers' legal consciousness in Greece: Self-identity, human rights, and expectations from European Union law

Abstract

This paper adds to the existing knowledge on migration and the law by empirically exploring the legal consciousness of 33 refugees and asylum seekers in Greece, more specifically, by discussing how their experiences, self-identity and expectations of the law inform their reactions to the restrictions imposed upon them. The findings suggest that (1) legal knowledge is acquired in the countries of origin and from contact with smugglers, other migrants, law enforcement agents and staff from NGOs; (2) this knowledge allows them to forge an identity as “rights-bearers,” which (3) together with perceptions and expectations of human rights law and European Union policies on migration, (4) empower them to claim protection from the Greek state, and (5) legitimizes their actions, even if these sometimes involve subterfuge. Despite their particularly vulnerable positions, refugees and asylum seekers are, therefore, not mere passive receivers of state power, but also try to use the law to overcome adversity, in an almost game-like fashion.