22 THE DUBLIN II TRAP TRANSFERS OF ASYLUM-SEEKERS TO GREECE Reports have been received about the apparent lack of sufficient interpretation services available during the stages of registration and examination of asylum claims for all asylumseekers, at both the airport and Attica Police Headquarters. A leaflet issued by the Ministry of Interior, which explains the basic asylum procedure in Greece, exists in five languages in order to inform asylum-seekers of their rights. However, although Amnesty International representatives have seen this leaflet in other detention areas across Greece, it is not distributed in the detention facilities at the airport and was not given to any Dublin II returnees interviewed by Amnesty International upon their arrival in Greece. (The leaflet referred to the asylum system before July 2009.) All but one of the asylum-seekers interviewed by Amnesty International stated that there were no interpreters or translators at the airport, including nine of whom were interviewed after July 2009. N., an Afghan asylum-seeker, was returned to Greece from Austria in October 2009. At Athens airport he was detained and then, upon release, given a notice in Greek requiring him to report to Petrou Ralli within three days. N. claimed that he does not speak Greek or English, and the airport police did not explain to him in any language that he understands what was contained in the notice. The police officer gave him the paper and said, in Greek: “Go away.” As a result, N. did not go to Petrou Ralli to apply for his asylum application card before the required deadline. A lack of interpreters has resulted in many asylum interviews being conducted in English, even though neither the police officer nor the asylum-seeker had a satisfactory command of the language. There were also instances in which the interpreter was left alone with the applicant76 and the interview was actually conducted by the interpreter. Human Rights Watch reported that: “It also appears that, because of the lack of interpreters, some asylum-seekers are being asked to provide interpretation services, without receiving any payment.”77 The European Commissioner for Human Rights has reported a “severe shortage of interpreters” in the Greek asylum determination system.78 Although police officers assured Amnesty International representatives on 25 September 2008 that interpreters are provided for interviews, it was not possible to verify this given that Amnesty International was only allowed to attend one asylum interview at the airport. This was in the case of A., a female Afghan asylum-seeker, transferred with her four children from Denmark. In that case, in April 2009, Amnesty International provided a male interpreter during the asylum interview, since there was no interpreter at the airport to assist the police. Asylum-seekers told Amnesty International that the questions were usually asked in English or Greek, even if the interviewee could barely or not at all understand the language. UNHCR has also concluded that: “due to a lack of interpretation and legal services, asylum-seekers are often interviewed in a language they do not understand and without being counselled on their rights during the asylum process”.79 Under the new PD 81/2009 system the asylum interviews of most asylum-seekers take place at the Attica Police Headquarters. The PD does not refer explicitly to Dublin II returnees, but in practice this is the office where they are interviewed. Amnesty International March 2010 Index: EUR 25/001/2010