Malakasa RIC started operations in September 2022 and was established on a pre-existing site which had been functioning as a reception facility for registered applicants since March 2020, named ‘New Malakasa’. Malakasa RIC is situated in a rural location, 42 km from Athens. Both the RIC and Malakasa CAFTA, a facility for registered asylum seekers located 1 km from the RIC, are built on a former military base, Gerakini. Conditions at New Malakasa were consistently reported as poor by the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture and civil society organisations. The physical composition and infrastructures of the site underwent significant changes before starting operations as a RIC in September 2022.

In September 2022, the Greek government implemented significant changes to the asylum system on the mainland. Stateless persons and third country nationals on the mainland, Rhodes or Crete, who were not already identified, had to undergo reception and identification procedures at one of two new screening facilities (RICs), located at Malakasa and Diavata, close to Athens and Thessaloniki respectively. Malakasa and Diavata began operating in September 2022 and were formally established as RICs in mid-November 2022 through a Presidential Decree.

The new Malakasa RIC was established on the same site as the accommodation facility for asylum seekers. Third country nationals entering the RIC undergo a screening procedure consisting of a police interview, vulnerability assessment, medical check and registration of an asylum claim. Under Greek law, an applicant can be subject to a deprivation of liberty for a maximum of 25 days, while undergoing reception and identification procedures. This deprivation of liberty has been routinely practiced at Malakasa since September 2022, which as highlighted by the Greek Ombudsperson was before its formal establishment as a RIC, and therefore lacked a legal basis.

Additionally, there have been multiple reports of violations relating to the deprivation of liberty. Mobile Info Team (MIT) and Refugee Legal support (RLS) and the Greek Ombudsperson have reported complaints that the restriction of freedom has been imposed without the issuance of a relevant decision, detainees experienced a lack of information and one case was highlighted where someone was deprived of liberty for 28 days, exceeding the legal maximum. In addition to these concerns, there have also been reports of vulnerable applicants who have presented at Malakasa RIC and subsequently arrested and detained in pre-removal detention.

Appointments for registration at Malakasa RIC can only be accessed via an online platform on the Migration Ministry’s website which launched in July 2022. Since the beginning, as reported by civil society organisations including Refugee Support Aegean (RSA), the platform has been consistently plagued by technical problems and long delays. The Greek Ombudsperson has noted that at Malakasa RIC in particular, there have been significant backlogs of appointment requests, leading to appointments scheduled far into the future and delays, a situation exacerbated by chronic staff shortages at the facility. According to the Ombudsperson, in the first half of 2023, an average of 30 people were registered per day at Malakasa RIC.

Despite some material changes to the structure of the facility after its designation as a RIC, the material conditions of the site reportedly continue to be inadequate. A visit from the Greek Ombudsperson in 2023 highlighted multiple issues relating to legal support, access to healthcare and material conditions at the facility.

The RIC's physical structure comprises a services area and an accommodation area which are separated by an internal fence. Residents are accommodated in isobox containers which are shared by approximately 8 people with only one bathroom. Research by MIT and RLS (2023) reported on the dirty and unhygienic conditions, and a lack of provision of basic items, with some not being given a towel, toothbrush or soap for the first week. Facilities for families were described as inadequate with insufficient educational provisions and safe and age-appropriate spaces for children to play. Food is provided by a catering company, distributed daily and consists of three pre-prepared meals and drinking water. It has been reported to be sufficient in quantity, but low quality and lacking in variety. As reported by MIT and RLS, one person undergoing de facto detention at the RIC explained that because of dietary requirements (vegan), he received the same meal 3 times a day.