879003
Testimony- Testimony collected by
- Border Violence Monitoring Network
- Date and location recorded
- 11th May 2023, Thessaloniki, Northern Greece
- Detention centre related
- Detention Centre Country
- Greece 2
- Duration of detention
- 6 - 12 months
- Nationality
- Pakistan
- Age
- 31
- Gender
- Male
- LGBTQI
- No answer
- Type of arrest
- Mass/sweep
- Why was the respondent detained?
- Undocumented
- Detained before?
- Unknown
- Was the respondent informed of the duration of detention?
- Unknown
- Did the respondent experience any violence?
- Yes
- Type of violence experienced
- Verbal insult
- Was the respondent forced to sign documents?
- Yes, in Greek
- Did the respondent have access to translation?
- No
- Did the respondent have access to medical aid?
- Yes
- Did the respondent have access to NGOs?
- Unknown
- Did the respondent have access to legal support?
- Unknown
- Did the respondent apply for asylum?
- Unknown
- Appealed?
- Unknown
- Number detained in cell
- 6
- Number detainees sharing WC
- Unknown
- Hygiene rating
- Very poor
- Type of cell
- Room, shared
- Had access to phone?
- No
- Had access to WiFi?
- Unknown
- Ventilation
- Unknown
- Participated in hunger strike / protest?
- Unknown
- Had conflicts with other detainees?
- Unknown
- Meal quality
- Very poor
- Meal quantity
- Only if detainee can pay for it
- Had access to water?
- Unknown
- Had access to outdoor space?
- Unknown
- Had access to educational resources?
- Unknown
- Had access to religious space?
- Unknown
- Had access to electricity?
- Unknown
- Had access to bed?
- Individual
- Had access to laundry?
- Unknown
- Had access to toilet articles?
- Unknown
- Had access to mattress?
- Unknown
- Narrative
The respondents are one man from Pakistan and two from Afghanistan respectively 31, 26, and 22 years old. The group was reportedly apprehended and subsequently held in a police station in Seres for 71 days and then in Paranesti Pre-Removal Detention Centre (PRDC) for approximately six and a half months. The respondents reported that the officers informed the group they were being apprehended because they did not have documents. In the police station, the group was reportedly held in a room on the ground floor with ten beds in it. The group reportedly signed documents written in Greek without understanding their contents. There was reportedly no Farsi translator at the police station to help the respondents understand the documents, although there was one Arabic translator there. The detainees were given a daily allowance for buying food from a market, but the food products were reportedly very expensive and this allowance did not cover much. After 71 days, the group was reportedly transferred with eight others to Paranesti PRDC without being informed of a reason for their transfer and continued detention. At Paranesti PRDC, the respondents described the hygienic conditions as poor. “There was no human rights or dignity there [at Paranesti PRDC].” The group reported that they had their phones confiscated when they arrived at the PRDC and that when the phones were returned on their release, the cameras of the phones were smashed. The group slept in a room with six bunk beds in it and reported that the food was extremely low quality, additionally the clothes the authorities gave them were very dirty and in some cases oversized. The respondents reported that on occasions when they visited the doctor at Paranesti PRDC, they were held in handcuffs for the whole duration of the appointment. The respondents reported that the authorities at Paranesti often refused to turn on the hot water to allow detainees to take a shower. Some officers reportedly used abusive language, telling the respondents to: “go malaka, take a shower with cold water”. Furthermore, the respondents reported that they saw a man who had been taken away by officers with visible serious injuries all over his body, including on his legs and face, which the respondents reported took a long time to heal. After approximately six and a half months of detention, the respondents were reportedly told by officers at the PRDC that they had been there “long enough” and were being released.