- 38 iv.
At Kalamata Police Station, the detention area consisted of seven cells for male and two
cells for female detained persons, with an official capacity respectively of 39 and eight. On
the day of the visit, 28 prisoners on transfer and four irregular migrants were being detained
in the police station. In one of the cells which measured 18m² and had six single plinth beds,
seven persons were being held, which meant that one of them had to sleep on a pile of
mattresses on the floor. The cells were dirty, humid and badly ventilated. There was
practically no access to natural light and the artificial lighting was poor, yet sufficient to
disturb the detained persons as it was not switched off at nights. There was also no light in
the completely partitioned sanitary annexe adjoining each of the male cells and, in four of
them, water was constantly running from the shower or toilet.
60.
The CPT has already made it clear that police stations in Greece do not offer suitable
accommodation and appropriate conditions for lengthy periods of detention.43 While it is positive
that the Greek authorities have made efforts to change the previous warehouse approach, certain
minimum standards in respect to material conditions in police stations still remain to be guaranteed.
The Committee calls on the Greek authorities to ensure that:
all persons detained have ready access to a proper toilet facility at all times, including
at night;
each detained person is provided with a clean mattress, clean blanket, clean bedding
and a means of rest, such as a plinth or a bed;
all detained persons are provided with adequate and appropriate food, which includes
at least one hot meal a day;
all detained persons staying longer than 24 hours are provided with a basic sanitary kit
(including adequate rations of soap, washing powder, toilet paper, shampoo, shaving
utensils and toothpaste, and a toothbrush), free of charge;
all detained persons are provided with sufficient quantities of detergent to keep their
cells clean;
detention areas (including sanitary facilities) are maintained in an adequate state of
repair and cleanliness;
all detained persons have adequate lighting;
all detained persons staying longer than 24 hours are provided with access to hot water
for the purpose of washing;
all persons detained longer than 24 hours are offered access to outdoor exercise every
day.
43
See, for instance, CPT/Inf (2012) 1, paragraph 37.
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