A/HRC/16/52/Add.4 responsible26 – and confinement in a specific juvenile correctional institution, as a measure of last resort.27 Article 54 of the Penal Code, as amended, outlines the length of sentences that can be imposed on juveniles. If the juvenile attains adulthood, the Juvenile Court can impose a reduced prison sentence which the offender has to serve in a prison facility.28 According to NGOs,29 the number of confinement terms imposed by courts is relatively low as opposed to reformatory measures. 5. Protection of asylum-seekers and refugees 22. Greece is a State Party to the Convention Against Torture, the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, the ICCPR and the ECHR, prohibiting the return of persons to another State where he/she may be subjected to torture (principle of non-refoulement). Article 21(1) of the PD 96/200830 and article 5 of PD 90/200831 prohibits refoulement, the latter foreseeing a right to stay for asylum-seekers until the administrative procedure for the examination of their application has been concluded. 23. According to article 13(1) of the PD 90/2008, applicants for asylum are exempt from expulsion and cannot be detained for the sole reason that the person illegally entered or remained in the country. However, article 13(2) allows for the detention of asylum-seekers in appropriate places “when, and for as long as necessary, this is needed in order to determine the circumstances of entry, the identity and origin of mass illegal entries of applicants, when this is required for reasons of public interest or public order or when this is considered necessary for the speedy and effective completion of the above mentioned procedure. The total time under restriction shall, in no case, exceed sixty days”. However, once a person is detained, the immigration law 3386(2005) applies and the filing of an asylum claim does not affect the asylum-seeker’s detention. Article 76(2) allows for the detention pending deportation for up to 6 months and under exceptional circumstances up to 18 months. III. Assessment of the situation A. Challenges facing the country 24. Greece, due to its geographical location, is under a particular pressure from migrants and refugees entering the EU. While the arrivals via the Mediterranean route have significantly dropped, arrivals via the Greek-Turkish border in the Evros region increased by 369 per cent in the period from January to September 2010,32 with 1,400 aliens arrested during the first two days alone of the Special Rapporteur’s visit. Aliens entering Greece are 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 8 Art. 126(1), Penal Code. Art. 127, Penal Code. Art. 130, Penal Code. OMCT, in collaboration with national human rights NGOs (2004), “State violence in Greece: An alternative report to the United Nations Committee Against Torture”. Presidential Decree 96/2008 on the transposition into the Greek legislation of Council Directive 2004/83/EC of 29 April 29 2004 on minimum standards for the qualification and status of thirdcountry nationals or stateless persons as refugees or as persons who otherwise need international protection and the content of the protection granted. Presidential Decree 90/2008 on the transposition into the Greek legislation of Council Directive 2005/85/EC from 1 December 2005 on minimum standards on procedures in Member States for granting and withdrawing refugee status, as modified by Presidential Decree 81/2009. Frontex, “Current situation at the external borders, January-September 2010”, www.frontex.europa.eu/.