4. Special Area C Wing in Korydallos Men’s Prison 48. In the report on its 2021 visit, the CPT described the living conditions in Special Area C in Korydallos Men’s Prison as being once again in an appalling state. It recommended that immediate steps be taken to reduce the occupancy levels, refurbish the material conditions and to offer the persons held in the unit access to purposeful activities. However, the conditions of detention for persons held in Special Area C had not improved by the time of the November 2022 visit. They remained an affront to human dignity and could, in the CPT’s view, be considered as amounting to inhuman and degrading treatment under the European Convention on Human Rights. 49. At the time of the 2022 visit, the configuration of the unit had slightly changed in that only three of the five cells along the back corridor were now allocated to persons accused of sexual offences. These persons were generally in transit for a few weeks or months due to a court case or while awaiting transfer to another prison establishment. A barred gate separated these three cells from the other six cells which housed persons under protection from other prisoners, all of whom had signed a paper consenting to their placement on this unit. The cells all measured a mere 6m2 and contained one or two beds, an unpartitioned floor level toilet and a basin. The walls and ceiling of the cells were dilapidated with flaking paint, damp patches and crumbling plasterwork. Cells 8 and 9 still had water leaking from the ceiling onto the floor or directly onto the persons sleeping on mattresses on the floor (as was the case in 2021). The in-cell artificial lighting did not function in all cells. The cells were dirty, the mattresses generally filthy, mould was present in several cells and hygiene was appalling. The single shower available for the unit was in a state of disrepair. 50. The three cells for persons accused of sexual offences were each accommodating three men with one or two sleeping on mattresses on the floor (that is, less than 2m2 of living space per person excluding the floor toilet). Moreover, it is quite common for up to five persons, or more, to be held in each of these cells. For much of the day, these persons are confined to their cells and a 9m2 area in front of their cells, with access to a small yard offered twice a day. The remaining six cells offered equally poor conditions and were mostly accommodating two or three persons. For example, Cell 3 accommodated three persons in 6m2, with one person sleeping on a mattress on the floor. The cell was dirty, the light switch was broken with very limited access to natural light, and the floor level toilet was filthy and not partitioned. These prisoners were offered no activities and, as they were not supposed to associate with the prisoners on the other corridor, access to the small outdoor yard was restricted. Several persons had been accommodated in these cells for six or more months. In addition, at the time of the visit, there were several vulnerable persons being held on this unit who were not being afforded the appropriate care. For example, the person held in Cell 6 displayed signs of being mentally ill through his disoriented and delusional speech and lack of personal hygiene. An older person located in Cell 8, who had leukemia and had been instructed to remain in bed and rest by his doctor the day prior to his transfer to Korydallos Men’s Prison due to a swollen and infected foot, had yet to be seen by the healthcare service. Another person stated that he had been denied access to any substance use programmes due to being located on this unit. 17