The situation in Greece: Medicins sans Frontieres (MSF) Since 2015, five Greek islands received the highest number of migrants and asylum seekers arriving to Greece. The so-called “hotspots” have been chronically overcrowded since the adoption of the EUTurkey Statement in March 2016 (the “Moria hotspot” on Lesbos hosts approximately 7500 people but was built with a capacity of 2500 people).13 Humanitarian funding for Greece decreased, especially throughout 2017, with many actors closing their programmes and operations. This despite the fact that the situation remains worrying and that a new peak of arrivals from Turkey has been documented in the first half of 2018. In terms of numbers, the number of migrants and refugees arriving on islands as on the Greek mainland (through Evros, the Greek - Turkish land borders) is approximately the same/equal. Many migrants and refugees are nationals of middle-Eastern countries, but there has been a significant rise in numbers of people arriving from sub-Saharan African countries, such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo in particular. The actual number of torture survivors among the migrant and refugee population varies depending on the source. Following the implementation of EU-Turkey Statement, Greece became a “slow transit country” for migrants, refugees and asylum seekers, therefore the general concepts that should be taken into consideration when designing programs for rehabilitation services such as the pre-migration period, the migration period and the post-migration period cannot be easily applied. Most of the migrants and refugees are heading through Greece to a third country. Therefore there is, on one hand, a high level of drop-outs of programs. On the other hand, there are many that stay longer than intended under inadequate living conditions, which makes it impossible for them to establish a network of valid social relations, an essential basis for the reconstruction of their identity. As a result of their mental and physical health deteriorates. It is therefore essential to create programmes that specifically address additional stress factors such as the inadequate living conditions of survivors. MSF operates on Lesbos with an emergency response programme and in Athens with a long-term rehabilitation centre. On Lesbos, victims of torture are referred to the MSF rehabilitation clinic in Athens. The MSF Athens project provides a more stable environment than Lesbos and is designed for long-term assistance. At the time of the workshop, there were approximately 60 victims of torture waiting on Lesbos to be moved to Athens. However, transfers have become increasingly difficult under the EU-Turkey agreement but also due to the lack of accommodation capacity on the mainland. Through the two centres, MSF is able to provide services to many victims of torture, restore their lives and the lives of their families but more needs to be done in terms of advocacy and resources. Regarding the monitoring and evaluation, participants discussed UNCAT’s General Comment No. 3 that provides that States should have mechanisms to oversee, monitor, evaluate and report on the implementation of the right to rehabilitation for victims of torture. Such mechanisms should collect data on the numbers of torture victims, their vulnerabilities, their rights and needs, and the services and funding offered by the State to meet them. Having monitoring and evaluation mechanisms in place also allows States to assess the effectiveness of services and ensure they remain sustainable by 13 As of June 2018. 19

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