“It’s like in prison. […] I never felt safe there.”

The respondent is a man aged 18-25 from Sierra Leone. He arrived on Samos at the end of 2022 and was subsequently transferred to the Samos CCAC where he stayed for approximately 3 months. After that, he was transferred to a camp in mainland Greece. This report will focus on his experience of his stay on Samos. 

The respondent reported that he arrived on Samos at the end of 2022 in a group of approximately 43 people. According to him, most of them were from Sierra Leone. Approximately 10 came from other French-speaking African countries. Among them were men, women, and children. He reported that he was subsequently transferred to the quarantine section of the Samos CCAC. He reported that not the whole group arrived in the CCAC together – “the rest were still hiding in the bush”.

Hygiene in the container

After some days in the quarantine zone, the respondent was transferred to one of the main sections of the CCAC. He reported that there, six people were staying in a container consisting of two rooms, a small kitchen, and a bathroom. He complained about the bad hygienic conditions in the containers. According to him there were cockroaches in the containers. While the outside of the camp was cleaned by what the respondent identified as the camp authorities, the responsibility of cleaning the inside of the containers was left with the residents. He described that on the first day he moved into the container, he went with his roommates to an office inside the camp asking for cleaning supplies. He reported that he was told by an employee there that they should buy their own cleaning supplies outside of the CCAC which was not possible as they were not allowed to leave the camp for up to 25 days after their arrival. “So we went to them and we said: […] ‘We need some soap. We want to clean our container because it is dirty, please’. They said if we want to do that we should go to the market and buy, and we are just arriving and after we arrived we were told we had to stay in the camp for 21 [more] days before going to the city.”

Lack of privacy, wifi, mobile data

Another issue that the respondent reported on was the lack of privacy inside the CCAC. As six people were living in each container, he felt that he could not even talk to his family on the phone. Further complicating factors which he reported were the bad quality of the Wi-Fi in the camp. Additionally, the bad mobile reception in the camp further complicated access to mobile data. 

Lack of access to medical and psychological treatment 

The respondent also reported that he had difficulties accessing medical treatment. He described an incident, where he wanted to go to the camp doctor to get painkillers and medicine because he was feeling pain. He was stopped by a guard in a white t-shirt and black jacket, which he identified as a member of the private security company G4S because of the logo on his jacket. The guard reportedly shouted at him, asking whether he had an appointment and that he could not enter if he did not have an appointment. As the respondent did not have an appointment, he left and came back later asking for painkillers again. He was told again by a guard that he could only access if he had an appointment. He reported that he only received painkillers after having been referred to the hospital. 

Furthermore, he reported that he did not feel like he could disclose his personal problems to the psychologist working in the camp. When he told her about his sleep problems in their first appointment he was reportedly shouted at and told to leave. In their second appointment, he was reportedly told “in your country you don’t have all of this opportunity, you have to spend a lot of money, now you are in the EU, you see this compound, is just because European standards”. He reported that after that he did not feel like he could disclose his problems to her. “I did not want to argue with an official of the camp, so I let it go. […] Her response did not even make me want to tell her what I was going through”.  

Insufficient food

Additionally, the respondent complained about the quantity and quality of the food that was provided inside the CCAC. He reported that the residents of the camp received food only twice a day – at 9 in the morning and 1 in the afternoon. To receive it, they had to wait in a long line. Reportedly the food was not enough. Also, it was reported that people that could not be present at the food distribution would not receive food. “If you are not there because of a medical appointment, it’s gone. You don’t get other food.”

Security measures, surveillance

Another aspect of life in the CCAC the respondent described was the extensive security infrastructure. He reported that the camp is surrounded by two different fences that one has to pass before entering the camp. Additionally, the camp is equipped with cameras, “cameras are everywhere”, and there is a strong presence of  security personnel. “You cannot pass like 5 metres or less without seeing a G4S official standing outside. They are always standing outside even at midnight.” Furthermore, he reported on the extensive controls on entering the camp. Reportedly, residents entering the camp are stopped and searched. They need to remove their outer wear, belts, hats, and watches and are then scanned. Also, their bags are checked. The respondent described an incident where he was in possession of 4 sleeping pills of 25 milligrams that were given to him by Doctors Without Borders outside of the camp. He reported that people, he identified as G4S personnel, found them in his bag upon entry. He was told that he could not bring the medicine inside the CCAC  and the pills were subsequently thrown away in an outdoor bin. The respondent described that he was confused about this behaviour. “Who said people could not bring the medicine inside the camp.” Furthermore, the respondent described another similar incident that happened at the entry controls. He described that he went to town and bought a Bluetooth speaker that he brought back to the camp. Upon the entry to the camp the speaker was seized, and he was told that he could not bring such a speaker inside the camp because it is too big and makes noise and that he should come back with a smaller one. The respondent described that he was confused about this as many people were having speakers inside the camp. He reported that he came back the next day when another person was on duty. After asking about his speaker again, he was told that he could take it inside. 

Overall, the respondent reported that he did not feel safe in the CCAC: “It’s like in prison. […] I never felt safe there.”