Police detention centres
to shorten the duration of arrivals quarantine in the event of a negative test
result. This recommendation was made because of a previously forwarded
report from the Federal Ministry of the Interior on the COVID-19 infection of
two detainees awaiting forced return directly before their forced return by air.
In January 2021, the Federal Ministry of the Interior stated that there were no
plans to use COVID-19 tests on detainees without a justified case of suspected
infection, as these could result in false negative test results, for example
because there is too little virus material at the time of the test. According to
the Ministry, there is no legal basis for the obligatory COVID-19 testing of
detainees.
COVID-19 testing
of detainees only in
suspected cases
The Federal Ministry of the interior announced, however, that all employees of
the Ministry have had the opportunity to take part in voluntary antigen tests
since December 2020. Furthermore, the Ministry reported about the intention
to create a department-wide test strategy according to which the employees
working in detention enforcement in particular are entitled to two voluntary
anonymous COVID-19 tests.
The commissions identified several deficits in relation to the COVID-19
pandemic on their visits to the detention centres.
For example, they noticed on the monitoring visits to Hernalser Gürtel police
detention centre in March and July 2020, and to Innsbruck police detention
centre in October 2020 that the receivers of the intercom in the visiting
area were not disinfected after each use. Furthermore, there was doubt on
a monitoring visit to Roßauer Lände police detention centre that the door
handles and the telephone system for the detainees were cleaned regularly.
Inadequate surface
disinfection
On the visit to Innsbruck police detention centre in October 2020 the
commission found the disinfectant dispensers in the women’s washrooms
and in the hallway empty. The monitoring visit to Hernalser Gürtel police
detention centre in July 2020 showed that there was no disinfectant in the cells
and no disinfectant dispensers at the entrances to the police detention centres.
During the latter visit, the detainees complained about the lack of written
information in foreign languages on the hygiene measures for the prevention
of COVID-19 infection. Furthermore, it was observed on the monitoring visits
to Vordernberg police detention centre and Roßauer Lände police detention
centre that there was only information in German and English on the hygiene
protection measures.
Inadequate information
on protective measures
The deployment of a prisoner serving an administrative penalty as a house
worker in Graz police detention centre appeared critical to the commission.
Although only admitted to the police detention centre just five days before
the monitoring visit, the detainee was not in quarantine but helping out with
serving food to the other detainees.
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