CCPR/C/118/D/2242/2013 carried out on 25 February 2014, even though no relocation had been decided upon. The State party did not refer to that decision in its observations, and the authors were informed thereof only on 10 January 2014. The authors also submit that the second relocation decision, of 18 October 2013, was taken without prior consultation with the community, which was informed on 25 November 2013 that it had been taken. 7.2 The authors submit that the State party did not inform the Committee that the Mayor of Megara had given his consent for relocation to the ABK 354 plot of land for the Megara Roma community but not for the Halandri Roma community. Additionally, the plot of land is located in an isolated area outside of the inhabited urban area of Megara, at the top of a mountain. The relocation decision is aimed at keeping members of the Roma community away from urban areas and constitutes an “apartheid decision”. On 13 December 2013, the Secretary-General of the Decentralized Administration of Attica issued a new decision indicating that although the Megara and Mandra authorities had opposed relocation of the Roma community to the ABK 354 plot of land, the relocation decision was nevertheless upheld.37 7.3 On 24 December 2013, the authors submitted an administrative appeal (an application for remedy) to the Secretary-General of the Decentralized Administration of Attica requesting annulment of the second relocation decision, alleging that it was unlawful because the Roma community affected and the Megara authorities had not been consulted.38 They requested the implementation of the first relocation decision. At the time of their submission to the Committee, the Secretary-General of the Decentralized Administration of Attica had not replied. 7.4 The authors reiterate that the State party has tried to evict them several times, without taking any measures to ensure their relocation, and that their eviction and the demolition of their homes have been avoided only thanks to the Committee’s interim measures. The authors submit that these actions illustrate the State party’s “attitude” towards Roma.39 7.5 Regarding the State party’s argument that article 7 of the Covenant has not been breached because they have not been evicted, the authors conclude that their eviction would therefore amount to a violation of article 7. They consider that the large budget invested in improving the living conditions in the settlement shows the State party’s approval of their presence there. 7.6 The authors also submit that adequate living conditions cannot be guaranteed just through services such as cleaning, removal of debris, and refuse collection. This investment, which involved only one operation back in 2007, is linked to a scandal, as part of the operation was based on fake documents. 40 The authors consider that the State party’s argument concerning the loan scheme is irrelevant, as the recent relocation decisions concern all Roma living in the settlement regardless of whether they benefited from a loan or not. Additionally, after having realized that the €60,000 provided by the loan scheme would not be enough to afford adequate housing, they requested the authorities to give 37 38 39 40 The authors indicate that on 14 January 2013, the Mayor of Megara announced that he would resign unless the second relocation decision was revoked. On 15 January 2013, the Mayor of Megara announced that the Secretary-General of the Decentralized Administration of Attica had resigned, allegedly because he had signed the contested relocation decisions. The authors quote a resolution by Megara Municipal Council dated 26 November 2013, protesting against the second relocation decision and characterizing it as unlawful and abusive. They provide several examples of Roma communities evicted without relocation or relocated to isolated areas between 2012 and 2014. The authors indicate that the Mayor of Halandri and other officials had to reimburse almost half of the investment and are currently on bail, under a criminal investigation related to these allegations. 9