SEPTEMBER 2011
ISBN: 1-56432-812-0
The EU’s Dirty Hands
Frontex Involvement in Ill-Treatment of Migrant Detainees in Greece
Summary ........................................................................................................................... 1
Key Recommendations ....................................................................................................... 6
To the European Commission, the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union .......6
To Participating European States ............................................................................................. 6
To the Frontex Management Board ........................................................................................... 6
To Greece ................................................................................................................................. 7
Methodology and Scope ..................................................................................................... 8
I. Background: Frontex ..................................................................................................... 10
History ................................................................................................................................... 10
Legal Authority ....................................................................................................................... 13
Cooperation with Other EU Agencies ....................................................................................... 16
II. Protection Crisis in Greece............................................................................................ 19
The Making of an Emergency................................................................................................... 19
Preparing for the RABIT Deployment ....................................................................................... 20
RABIT 2010 .............................................................................................................................23
Greece Criticized ....................................................................................................................24
The Committee for the Prevention of Torture .....................................................................24
The EU Fundamental Rights Agency .................................................................................. 25
Frontex Attempts to Reduce Violations in Detention ................................................................ 27
III. Inhuman and Degrading Detention Conditions ............................................................. 29
Detention Conditions ............................................................................................................. 29
Fylakio ............................................................................................................................ 29
Tychero ............................................................................................................................32
Feres ................................................................................................................................ 33
Soufli ............................................................................................................................... 35
Access to Asylum ....................................................................................................................36
IV. Frontex’s Enforcement Role in Greece .......................................................................... 38
Apprehensions .......................................................................................................................38
Nationality-Determination Interviews ..................................................................................... 40