A/HRC/16/52/Add.4
A male detainee from Tunisia has been here for three days. He was heavily beaten by CID
officers. The forensic expert said that his story is corroborated by the fresh and large scars
on his face, skull and fingers. The traumatic lesions were totally compatible with the
allegation presented. He could not see a doctor. He also complains that he received no food
at all, and could not take a shower. He showed to the Special Rapporteur that he can drink
from a pipe that is falling from the roof, on the wall. He is very afraid and does not dare to
speak much. In the middle of the interview, he is roughly asked to go to court by the
officers and leaves.
Korydallos Men’s Prison, Athens
Visited on 18 October 2010
The Special Rapporteur was received by the Prison Director Prison Director Mr. Zannides
Korydallos Prison is the biggest prison in Greece. It was designed for 800 prisoners but
holds presently 2256 plus 20 new arrivals. It is divided into 6 different buildings. Blocks A,
B, C and D are built in the same way: 3 floors of 40 single cells each, i.e. 120 prisoners per
bloc. Presently each cell, built for one detainee, holds up to 4 of them. Blocks E and F were
added later. Block A is presently used mostly for Greeks, Bloc B for drug offenders, Blocks
C and D for foreigners. Persons of the same nationality are put together in the same cells. A
part of Block C is dedicated to vulnerable people. Block E is for detainees from other
prisons who are brought before a court and for migrants in administrative detention. Block
F is for people who are held for debt to the Greek State and for special categories, such as
police officers, prison guards and people fearing for their lives. The disciplinary cells are
between Blocks C and D, but are now used as normal cells because of overcrowding.
From 8 to 11 am, the cell doors are open in most blocks and detainees go to the outside
yard but cannot mix with prisoners from other blocks. Lunch is from 11 to noon, and from
12 to 3.45 pm the cell doors are closed. From 3.45pm until sunset the detainees can go
again to the yard. Those in the punishment cells are allowed one hour each in the morning
and in the evening out of the cells. The vulnerable people unit in Block C is constantly
locked down because of an escape in 2008. The detainees held there can therefore not go
out at all.
There are jobs for a total of 600 prisoners, and presently 550 have work. Most detainees are
in pre-trial detention.
Any new detainee must have an initial medical screening. In 2010, they found injuries from
beatings by the police, but no further action was taken. There is a special complaints
procedure against prison guards, and the prosecutor can be directly contacted, even by
anonymous letter.
The Forensic Expert visited the Korydallos Psychiatric Prison Hospital. He reported to the
Special Rapporteur that the injecting drug users (IDU) do not receive substitute treatment or
specific medical attention. According to the information received, Korydallos does provide
methadone and the forensic expert observed the kind of substitution therapeutics that were
available.
On Saturday 16 October, there was a serious incident in Block C. Fights broke out between
different ethnic groups, in particular Iraqi Kurds and Algerians. A number of detainees and
guards were injured, and some had to be brought to the hospital. According to detainees the
fight really sparked with the general frustration about the conditions of detention and the
judicial system. As a consequence, all prisoners in the 2nd and 3rd floor are locked down.
When the Special Rapporteur visited Block C, prisoners were extremely agitated. Shouted
from inside the cells and started to light fires both outside and inside the building.
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