"If I had a sheep or a dog I wouldn’t let them live there”
| Between November 2022 and March 2023 | Amygdaleza PRDC | Anonymous | 45.7908691, 15.9976521 | Detention and Reception Reports | Greece | Amygdaleza PRDC | Pre-Removal Detention Centre (PRDC) | no | yes | no | no | no | no | Syrian Kurdistan | Beating (Kicking), Beating (with Batons/Hands/Other), Harsh Language and Insults (Reference to Race, Reference to Gender, Reference to Ability, Reference to Sexuality), Theft of Belongings | Fingerprints Taken, Photograph taken, Lack of Access to Medical Care, Poor Quality/Quantity of Food and/or Water | 31 to 60 days |
The respondent was a Kurdish man from Syria (age group 31-45). He stated that he was first apprehended in 2013, as he was stopped at the Greek-Turkish border with his wife and they were consequently pushed back. Then, in 2019, he re-entered Greece and claimed asylum but he got a negative decision.
“Every time they catch me, they send me to prison”
Between January and June 2023, the respondent was reportedly arrested in Omonia Square in Athens at 8 in the morning, while he was going to work. At the time of his arrest, he was with another Syrian person. The respondent reported that they were stopped by 7 police officers, although in the area there were around 15 policemen in total. He stated that the police officers “were looking for someone who was doing something. They were acting like a gangster”.
The respondent recalled that there were police officers with uniforms, but the officers who apprehended him and his friend were “all undercover police with civil clothes”. Reportedly, there was a blue and white car which had the sign of police and a white van with no signs. The respondent and his friend were taken inside the white van, in which they found other police officers. As they got inside, the respondent reported being insulted and beaten with plastic batons by three police officers speaking Greek language. The three police officers were wearing black uniforms and “were not wearing a balaclava or anything like that, so you could clearly see their faces”. The respondent stated that he was forced to stay in the van parked in the same place for about 4/5 hours, while the police kept on bringing new people inside. “Every time they brought inside a new person, they beat him, and they beat us as well”. The respondent reportedly counted 45 people inside the van. As the number of people increased and the van got too crowded, “they could not beat us anymore, so they had to leave”.
The respondent reported being taken to Petrou Ralli PRDC, which was 10/15 minutes away from Omonia. Once there, the police took their fingerprints and pictures of their faces. They were not provided with any food or water for the following 5 hours.
After 5 hours, the respondent was reportedly transferred to the Amygdaleza PRDC on another van, which was less crowded. When they arrived there, they were divided into groups, all holding their paper from Petrou Ralli. “In order to get to the waiting room, you have to give them the paper and the full name. They are taking you to the waiting room and there you will get the number that indicates where you’re going to stay.” The respondent reported being given one very old blanket.
Reportedly, on the first day, they experienced physical violence from police officers in uniforms. The respondent stated, "The reason was to show us that we cannot cause any problem here and we have to be quiet, and we cannot do any trouble during our time". If anybody said something, the police would beat them with batons and kick them, before taking them out.
The respondent described the conditions inside Amygdaleza as really bad. "I swear they were really bad things to give even to an animal. If I had a sheep or a dog I wouldn’t let them live there”.
He added that the food they were given was terrible. “It was really old and the bread was moldy, once it got to you it was already blue”. He explained that there was a truck coming three or four times per week, where they could buy fresh vegetables and food so that they could cook themselves, but he only bought cola "to clean his stomach".
By the time he was detained, the respondent needed medical support due to a cardiac problem, “a condition in his heart that happened to him in Greece due to all the experiences”. He reported asking more than 20 times for medical assistance, but he was given only Depon (paracetamol). While he was in detention, he fainted and lost consciousness, but he was not taken to the hospital. Instead, he was taken to a room where they gave him antiseptics, painkillers, and a drip feed. He reported staying there for three hours. After the medicines calmed down his pain, he was brought back to his room.
The respondent was told that he was supposed to stay in Amygdaleza for 15 days, but he ended up being detained for 1 month. He added that “There are people from Morocco and Egypt who are more than one year there”.
While he was detained, the respondent reported applying again for asylum. He was reportedly given a police note, saying "You have to leave the country in the next 6 months". He later paid a lawyer 400 euros and got released. Before leaving the camp, he claimed his belongings back, namely a watch and a necklace. The police refused to give them back to him, and they reportedly said, "You are a liar, you didn’t leave anything here”.