Documentary · 45 min · 2025
From Compassion to Crime
What happens when helping your fellow human being becomes a crime?
What happens when helping your fellow human being becomes a crime?
Europe is tightening its borders, and with them the boundaries of what is punishable. Not only refugees but also citizens, journalists and volunteers who offer help are increasingly confronted with prosecution, intimidation and years-long court cases.
From Compassion to Crime follows three people who put their humanity above the rules and paid a high price for it:
A Dutch skipper who could not ignore people drowning. Greece prosecuted him for people smuggling. After eight years he was acquitted on 15 January 2026; he died two months later.
A Dutch journalist and, for years, correspondent in Greece. Prosecuted both for her publications and for sheltering a young Afghan refugee. Acquitted on appeal.
Runs the 24/7 emergency line Aegean Boat Report and documents illegal pushbacks. Accused of people smuggling and participation in a criminal organisation.
The film shows how humanitarian aid and journalism come under pressure in a Europe that increasingly places security and deterrence above protection and human rights. In 2023 alone, 117 Europeans were prosecuted for helping refugees.
What struck me most was seeing how inhumanely refugees are treated, and yet the people who helped them keep finding ways to help.Audience member · Pakhuis de Zwijger
Pakhuis de Zwijger wrote 'Not guilty, but punished nonetheless' about the trial of 24 aid workers on Lesbos. STIL Utrecht published 'Risk of 20 years in prison for helping a fellow human being'.
From Compassion to Crime is more than a film. We organise screenings with post-screening discussions for festivals, schools, foundations and NGOs. The film thus serves as a tool for discussing European policy and the limits of solidarity.