THE DUBLIN II TRAP TRANSFERS OF ASYLUM-SEEKERS TO GREECE 55 122 UNHCR, Observations on Greece as a country of asylum, December 2009 123 European Commission, Ensuring a decent standard of living for asylum-seekers in the European Union, http://ec.europa.eu/justice_home/fsj/asylum/seekers/wai/fsj_asylum_seekers_en.htm 124 Council Directive 2003/9/EC of 27 January 2003. 125 Article 11(1) of the ICESCR guarantees, “the right of everyone to… adequate… housing, and to the continuous improvement of living conditions.” Additionally, Refugee Convention Art 21; Women’s Convention Article 14(2); Children’s Convention Articles 16(1) and 27(3); Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination Article 5(e)(iii). 126 General Comment 4 “the right to adequate housing” (Article 11(1)), CESCR, sixth session, 1991, para.8. 127 UNHCR, Observations on Greece as a country of asylum, p.10 128 The available places do not correspond to the number of arrivals each year. According to statistics provided to the UNHCR by the Greek authorities, some 6,000 unaccompanied and separated minors arrived in Greece in 2008 (UNHCR, Observations on Greece as a country of asylum, p. 13) 129 Amnesty International Greece wrote to the Ministry of Health, seeking reasons for the closure of the shelter and whether alternative accommodation was being provided, but had not received a reply as of the end of February 2010. 130 Greece: Further forced evictions leave large numbers homeless, (EUR 25/008/2009). 131 Greece: Amnesty International condemns forced evictions in Patras, (EUR 25/007/2009). 132 Interview on 23 September 2008. 133 Interview with the director and members of staff of the Anogia minors’ shelter on 8 May 2009. 134 Interview on 23 March 2009 with the director and a psychologist of MOSAIC. 135 The former director stated that Greece no longer has an institution which can provide services for torture victims, issue certificates for them and therefore stop their refoulement to countries where they could again become victims of torture or even the death penalty. She estimated that approximately 1,200 persons of the total migrants arriving in one year, i.e. 15-20%, are torture victims. 136 See http://www.unhcr.org.uk/what-we-do/Quality-Initiative.html for more information.