Members of the Board also held an official meeting at the Ministry and two other
meetings with the Director and deputy heads Head of the Detention Centres to prepare
for this visit.
During the SPT visit the Board members held a preliminary meeting with the SPT
group and an evaluation meeting at the end of the visit.
The Board members together with the members of the SPT had a full morning visit at
Safi Detention Centre where the UN delegation saw the Board members conducting a
routine visit at the centre.
4. Complaints by Detained Persons
The detainees presented their complaints to the Board, and the Members then reviewed
and clarified each complaint with the Administration of the Centres. Some complaints
were about the physical environment with such things as showers, fans, electric cookers,
heaters, light tubes, freezers, broken windows panes and TVs being out order for a
period of time.
The Board frequently received complaints about the lack of provision of shoes and when
these were provided, sometimes they proved to be of such low quality that they were
torn after a few weeks. Other complaints centred around food, which they alleged was
not always varied or insufficient. Food was checl<ed regularly by the Board Members and
when necessary the complaints were ironed out between the Board Members and the
Administration.
Other complaints by detainees were about their refugee status. Some alleged that they
did not have an appointment for the interview about the granting of refugee status, or
had no knowledge of their status or the result of the interview or had no information of
the fate of their pa1tners with whom they had left the country of origin. Some detainees
claimed that they were vulnerable owing to age and to other health issues. The Board
did its best to bring these complaints to the attention of the Authorities concerned.
However these most of these complaints were not always founded or credible.
Some major complaints concerned the medical service, with medicines reaching inmates
late - sometimes even five days after having their medicine prescribed. Some alleged
that hospital appointments were not always kept whilst results of medical tests were not
always available to Detention medical doctors on time. A major complaint at the
beginning of the Year was the small number of detainees who could see the doctor on
duty. Some complaints were seen to immediately. The Board noted a marked
improvement in the medical service at the Detention Centres. Doctors were doing their
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