»The truth may be bitter, but it must be told« deportation of H. The European Court of Human Rights prohibited the removal. The 17-year-old had been detained in Turkey for over two months. After his release he was transferred to Marsin, where he currently 9 remains. He is not allowed to leave the city. According to his lawyer, the boy is depressed. The circumstances of his flight, the unlawful expulsion from Greek territory, detention in Turkey and the threat of removal to Afghanistan, have completely demoralised him. He is now living without means in Turkey and is anxiously awaiting the outcome of the processing of his asylum claim. His only hope is that one day he can live with his brother in Sweden. The structure and mandate of the Greek coast guard In time of peace the Greek coast guard is under the command of the ministry of the civil merchant navy, ensuring the »surveillance of ships, harbours, sea areas and maritime borders, in accordance with the appropriate national legislation and international agreements10« as well as carrying out the usual maritime tasks. The head of the coast guard is the incumbent minister of the merchant navy in Athens; since May 2004 Manolis K. Kefalogiannis has held this position. However, even during times of peace the military is represented in higher levels of the coast guard by a Vice Admiral, currently Elias Sionidis. In times of war or crisis the Vice Admiral directs the coast guard, acting under command of the Greek ministry of defence.11 Over the last few years the coast guard has been modernising to increase the efficiency of its operations. Technical equipment is constantly upgraded and the newest models are being used. Staff are being specially trained for deployment in the various operations of the coast guard. Currently, the vessels used by the coast guard are Type Lambro 57 III speedboats made by the Italian »Lambro Marine« company. The combined power of the two motors of this boat is 3000 HP; the boat can attain speeds of up to 55 knots (about 100km/hr). Its prow is equipped with a mount, onto which a machine gun can be set. Originally the boats were acquired with EU funds, to monitor fish stocks. Special units 12, which do not operate under the usual civilian regional chains of command as the rest of the coast guard, are operational in the name of the coast guard. These units operate independently on selfassigned, often secret, missions. They take orders directly from the leadership of the coast guard’s military section. Chios: A boat mistakenly shot at by the coast guard, just near the coast. 12 The practices of the Greek coast guard: systematic human rights violations