The prosecution of those who help migrants, the harassment of NGOs and the deliberate misuse of counter-terrorist measures - Europe is a fortress which has criminalised solidarity, Amnesty International said in a report on Tuesday which often mentions Croatia.

The report is based on research conducted between 2017 and 2019. It criticised the misuse of laws against smugglers and counter-terrorism measures to discourage those helping refugees, migrants and asylum seekers.

AI reported on the situation in various parts of Europe, from states which are entry points for migrants such as Croatia, Greece, Malta, Italy and Spain, to those in the interior of the European Union such as France, the UK and Switzerland, saying legal processes are being deliberately misused in all.

In the 92-page document, Croatia is mentioned over 100 times. The report condemns the violence of the border police, the ban on NGOs from accessing centres for asylum seekers, the confiscation of migrants’ property, and the authorities’ denial that the law is being broken on the border by the police.

The report says Croatian politicians have underlined a number of times that the protection of the EU’s external border is one of the key conditions for Croatia’s joining the Schengen Area which, AI says, suggests that the EU condones, perhaps even openly encourages, Croatia’s activity on the border.

In its recommendations to European institutions, AI recommends suspending Croatia’s Schengen entry until it records progress with regard to violations on the border.