Early morning on Wednesday 12/11 police raided Kavala camp and took a number of people citing the new immigration law. This is not the first time such a raid has happened in camps.
Reports of Horrendous Conditions inside Amygdaleza Detention Centre Below are testimonies from 3 individuals detained in amygdaleza about police violence, conditions and prevention to apply for asylum.
They said that the living conditions in Amygdaleza are very poor, with massive overcrowding, a lack of beds, mattresses and blankets, lack of warm water and hygiene products and the prevalence of insects and rats. The situation with the rats is so bad that detainees sleep in shifts in order to keep the rats at bay.
There are approximately 14 people living in each container, but only 2 beds and the container is so dilapidated that half the floor is missing. Many people do not have mattresses or blankets despite the cold weather and that they are not provided with clothes. Over 100 people share the same bathroom which has only 4 toilets, and only 6 or 7 showers. There is no hot water or soap or shampoo. “Even though we ask for it [soap] they [the police] ignore us… they tell us to go clean yourself in your own country”. There is a lack of access to medical care, legal advice and asylum procedures, despite requesting cops.
They are put under immense psychological pressure to sign deportation documents. The police target egyptians with mistreatment as a strategy to try and push people to sign deportation papers: “They psychologically pressure them to sign for deportation. When we ask for anything, they ignore us. Even so, the other people that have been here when they ask for something – they give them”. The are subjected to ridicule by guards when requesting asylum such as guards pretending to write down details and performing fake writing in the air. Some people are considering signing deportation papers simply to get out of Amygdaleza, as the conditions are so appalling.
On arriving to Amygdaleza he was required to sign two documents, in Greek and Arabic, which related to a 3-month detention. He was sent to a container without ventilation or heating and a “house of insects”. He was left 70 days with the same clothes and didn’t have any blankets. The food is terrible and “some of it is not edible”. Except for a check-up on arrival he never sees medical staff the cops only give people paracetamol in extreme cases. He has not received any kind of legal support and has been ignored by the authorities when requesting information on asylum procedures. The authorities are “very racist” and “very hostile”, using physical violence on a regular basis in response to detainees asking for their rights to be respected, always outside of the CCTV cameras’ field of vision. Threats of deportation from police are also constant.
On arrival to amygdaleza he was exposed to extreme temperatures being left for three hours in the sun without any access to water. His requests for water were reportedly met with physical and verbal violence from the authorities. Physical violence, insults and racism from detention officers is common in Amygdaleza: “The police assault us…physically, and they beat us a lot and they are all very racist…They told us ‘You must go back to your country. We don’t give you any asylum’ […]. We believe in human rights and I told them that, but when I told the police officer, ‘That’s not your right to punish me like that’ and he punished me again and again […] anytime anyone has a problem here, they come to beat us”. He has wanted to apply for asylum since arriving, but his requests were met with denial, intimidation and pressure to sign deportation forms by police. Basic hygiene items were provided only once, and the only other option is to buy these from a market visiting the facility three times a week at high prices. The prison is infested with “hundreds of rats” and detainees alternate sleep schedules to chase away rats.
Assembly Against Detention Centres
We call everyone to the bicycle / moto-demonstration on 22/11 Against Detention Centres, Plateia Amerikis 12:30 in Athens https://athens.indymedia.org/event/99274/
