Beaten by guards and denied important resources – water, soap and even medications Joseph,* from the Democratic Republic of Congo, was detained for two-and-a-half months in three different police stations in Athens. The conditions in each station were inhumane. Detainees were locked up 24 hours a day, not even allowed a short walk. There was no drinking water in the cell. Detainees were forced to drink water from the toilet, which they could only access with permission from the guards. Cells were very small, with up to eight people sharing. Often there were not enough beds, so people slept on the floor. Asked if they had been given any soap, Joseph said ‘jamais, jamais, jamais’ (never, never, never). He gives the same answer when asked about toilet paper. Joseph was beaten while in the cells and was refused the medication he was on (antidepressants). He was called ‘Mavro’ (Μαύρο – black) by the police guards. He was released in July 2021 after legal action by the Greek Council for Refugees. His mental health was so fragile that after leaving detention, he was hospitalized for nearly a month. Confined for months in a cell, begging guards for toilet breaks Omar,* a Syrian man, was in administrative detention for nine-and-a-half months. Despite undergoing the asylum process, he was put in detention on the grounds of public order. He spent seven months in the headquarters of the Greek police (at Petrou Ralli) in Athens and two months in the detention centre at Amygdaleza. ‘There was a major difference between the two centres… In Amygdaleza you could keep and use your mobile phone, you could use the toilet freely, you could buy your own meal, you could have visits. But, most important, you could move freely inside the camp. In Petrou Ralli, we were locked in our cells for 22 hours a day – no mobile phone, no visits, disgusting food. We often had to beg the guards to unlock us to go to the toilet. And sometimes this was not even possible.’ Omar was detained when he went to give his fingerprints as part of the asylum procedure. He shared a cell of about 12 square metres with four other people. The detainees slept on mattresses infested with bed bugs. The guards shouted at them and sometimes acted violently towards the detainees. Omar witnessed one man being beaten by guards because he did not enter his cell quickly enough. Omar believes that this violence had the silent approval of the heads of the detention centre. He says that no such incident happened in Amygdaleza while he was there. Omar was released in June 2021 after legal action by the Greek Council for Refugees. 11