046809
Testimony- Testimony collected by
- Border Violence Monitoring Network
- Detention centre related
- Detention Centre Country
- Greece
- Duration of detention
- 6 - 12 months
- Nationality
- Bangladesh
- Gender
- Male
- Type of arrest
- Mass/sweep
- Why was the respondent detained?
- Illegal entry
- Detained before?
- Yes
- Was the respondent informed of the duration of detention?
- No
- Did the respondent experience any violence?
- No
- Did the respondent have access to translation?
- Yes
- Did the respondent have access to medical aid?
- Yes, but insufficient
- Did the respondent have access to legal support?
- No
- Did the respondent apply for asylum?
- Yes
- Appealed?
- Yes
- Number detained in cell
- 10+
- Number detainees sharing WC
- 10+
- Hygiene rating
- Very poor
- Type of cell
- Isobox/container, shared
- Had access to phone?
- Yes, own
- Ventilation
- Dysfunctional
- Participated in hunger strike / protest?
- Yes
- Meal quality
- Very poor
- Had access to outdoor space?
- Yes, limited space
- Had access to toilet articles?
- Provided, limited
- Link to external source
- Detailed testimony available on the BVMN database
- Narrative
The respondent is a Bangladeshi national who arrived in Greece from Libya in mid-August 2025 and was subjected to the unlawful suspension of asylum applications, implemented by the Greek government between July-October 2025 for all third country nationals arriving from North Africa. He was automatically detained on arrival to Greece, without access to the asylum procedure, and remained in detention after the ban was lifted. The respondent described dire conditions in the Sintiki facility including severe restrictions on access to decent food, healthcare, legal aid and high levels of psychological disstress leading to frequent suicide attempts. He reported receiving a 50-day detention order over a month after arriving in the facility but no other documents or information. Accommodation containers were described as overcrowded, holding 15-20 people at one time despite a capacity of 4-6, and in some cases with dysfunctional air conditioners. Detainees were reportedly provided with a blanket upon arrival, but the amounts of beds and bedsheets were insufficient. The respondent described how 300 people in his section of the facility had to share 3 bathrooms. Detainees reportedly cleaned the bathrooms with products provided by the camp management as the cleaner only visited infrequently. Detainees were reportedly unable to access hot water during the winter months, and were provided with 3 bars of soap per person for their entire detention period. Detainees were reportedly asked to pay to access basic items such as toothbrushes and toothpaste that the facility’s authorities had in stock. Other products sold by a market visiting the facility were reportedly at inflated prices and unaffordable to most. The respondent reported that he was not provided with any clothes and had to wear those he arrived in from Libya. He described low quality food which resulted in food poisoning. Regarding healthcare he stated that doctors were hard to access and medication was limited to painkillers unless detainees could pay. The respondent reported that all people detained in the facility were subjected to accelerated asylum procedures and received a rejection on their asylum application following the lifting of the ban. Some detainees protested as a result. The respondent shared that detainees did not have access to fair asylum procedures as they received accelerated decisions (in some cases without an interview) and limited access to legal assistance. He further shared that only some detainees were released following the second rejection on their asylum claims and it was unclear to him why the rest received extensions to their detention decisions lasting 6 or 12 months. The respondent emphasised the total lack of information provision: “If we told anything about our situation to the police, to the captain, they told us one thing only. Everyone we were in contact with said they don’t know, only politicians know. [...] We did a hunger strike for 4 days. We just had one demand: for the captain to talk with us. But in 4 days, we saw nobody coming to talk with us. 20-25 people got sick in 4 days.”