CCPR/C/121/D/2770/2016 June 2000. He also provided statements from the staff members of the asylum centre in Denmark indicating that, taking into account his behaviour and interaction with other persons staying at the centre, they were not surprised when they learned that the author was a minor. Moreover, the Committee notes the author’s claim that unaccompanied minors are being placed in “protective custody” in Greece due to a lack of adequate spaces, such as children’s shelters, and that he would risk detention under inhuman and degrading prison conditions upon his arrival were he to be deported to Greece. The Committee also notes the author’s claim that he is a minor and a refugee, currently suffering from psychological problems due to the stress resulting from his past experiences in the Syrian Arab Republic and in Greece as well as throughout the asylum proceedings in the State party, and that he now finds himself in a situation of great vulnerability. 8.7 The Committee also notes the finding of the Refugee Appeals Board that Greece should be considered the first country of asylum in the present case, and also notes the position of the State party that the first country of asylum is obliged to provide asylum seekers and refugees with basic human standards, although it is not required that such persons have the same social and living standards as nationals of the country. In this regard, the State party refers to a decision of the European Court of Human Rights, which held that the fact that the applicant’s material and social living conditions would be significantly reduced if he or she were to be removed from the contracting State — in this case, Denmark — is not sufficient in itself to give rise to a breach of article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights.45 8.8 The Committee further notes the State party’s authorities finding that the author is not a minor, as 1 June 1995 was the first birth date he provided and that it was the date registered, based on the information provided by the author himself to both the Greek and the Danish authorities. The Committee also notes the State party’s argument that the author maintained that he was an adult throughout the asylum proceedings and that it was only after his asylum request had been rejected by the Danish Immigration Service that he submitted a motion to change his birth date. The Committee further notes the State party’s statement that the family book the author submitted to the Danish authorities to support his claim contains contradictory information and that, as the civil registry in the Syrian Arab Republic is no longer functioning, the family book and the birth certificate that the author submitted could not be considered as objective elements of evidence. 8.9 The Committee notes that according to available background material, although conditions for refuges and asylum seekers in Greece have improved, as new legislation has been adopted and measures have been taken to improve the functioning of the asylum system, the situation is still challenging. In particular, the Committee notes recent reports according to which the treatment currently accorded in Greece to certain categories of persons, in particular vulnerable applicants, including unaccompanied minors, is inadequate.46 In this connection, the Committee refers to the UNHCR Recommendations for Greece in 2017, according to which the national capacity for accommodating unaccompanied and separated children is still far from meeting the needs and that children are exposed to ongoing protection risks, including sexual exploitation and abuse, due to insufficient security, substandard and overcrowded reception sites, lack of specific services and insufficient access to formal or non-formal education and lengthy asylum procedures 45 46 Samsam Mohammed Hussein and others v. the Netherlands and Italy. See also para. 4.5. European Commission recommendation of 8 December 2016 addressed to the member States on the resumption of transfers to Greece under regulation (EU) No. 604/2013. Available from https://ec.europa.eu/home-affairs/sites/homeaffairs/files/what-we-do/policies/european-agendamigration/proposal-implementation-package/docs/20161208/recommendation_on_the_ resumption_of_transfers_to_greece_en.pdf. See also European Court of Human Rights, Ilias and Ahmed v. Hungary (application No. 47287/15), judgment of 14 March 2017. In addition, according to the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, on 17 March 2017 there were 891 children on the waiting list to be referred to the National Centre for Social Solidarity for accommodation, and although specialized reception facilities are available for only 1,272, some 2,000 unaccompanied children are staying in Greece. See http://fra.europa.eu/en/theme/asylum-migration-borders/overviews/april-2017. 12