A report from watch-dog groups in Greece asserts that refugee camps in Greece’s mainland “are inadequate and undignified, still failing to meet minimum legal standards and depriving people of their basic human rights.”
The report from Mobile Info Team and Refugee Legal Support is based on a series of interviews with camp residents, and follows a July 2024 report on camp conditions.
The report finds that all the camps have a dearth of psychiatrists and in some camps there are no doctors of any kind. When there are doctors, there is almost never translation provided, with people having to resort to translating dire medical questions via google translate on their mobile phones. Without cash assistance to buy medications, or to pay the taxi fare (only method of transportation) to the hospital.
In the last nine months two people have died in the camps– One man died in Ritsona camp, and one five-year old child in Schisto whose parents took her to the doctor in the camp, but were left to communicate with the doctor via google translate.
Residents reported that the camps often don’t have proper heating in the winter, air conditioning in the summer, protection from pests, or furnishing.
Provision of non-food essential items such as diapers, pads, tampons, socks, shampoo, or soap is irregular at best. The food provided at the camp can be either under-cooked or expired, and is almost always meagre.
“This is not a place for humans. Here our existence is below zero. We made this journey to make a life for our children, not to die in Syria, but we could never have imagined conditions so bad. Mentally, physically and practically, life is not possible here,” one man in Oinotyfa camp told the watchdog organizations.
Transportation to and from the camp is not provided and is often impossible via public transit, leaving residents stranded and isolated.
Camp residents are not provided with any cash assistance, though both Greek and EU law call for it, and ear-marked money has already been sent from the EU to Greece for cash assistance purposes.
Accommodations for residents with disabilities are minimal or non-existent. The report referenced one person who uses a wheelchair and with epilepsy without any proper support who reported he is forced to resort to urinating in a water bottle as he cannot access the bathroom.
This report comes the same week as a stark investigation from investigative outlet Solomon that showed that unaccompanied minors in Greece’s island camps have inadequate food, hygiene, psychological support. The investigation revealed that EU officials knew that “children often sleep on the floor in shifts”.
Greek authorities did not respond to request for comment on these allegations.
Residents of the camps have regularly protested against the conditions, though they remain largely unchanged.
At a March 25 visit to the Closed Controlled Facility camp on the island of Kos, the new Minister of Immigration and Asylum, Makis Voridis stated that the ministry was going to focus on returns, and pledged money to the island camp: “The migration issue is of particular gravity and importance, and its effective management is crucial for local communities,” he said. “I believe that we are currently at a satisfactory level of management and will improve further.”
