On December 17, 2021, the Administrative Court of First Instance of Syros ruled that the ban placed on an Afghan asylum seeker from leaving the closed reception centre of Zervos in Samos was unlawful, on the basis that the ban was a de facto detention measure imposed in violation of the law. As the Greek Council for Refugees (GCR), which represented the Afghan applicant in court, points out, this is the first court decision that defines the prohibition from leaving a reception centre as illegal.
The exit ban resulted in the applicant’s confinement within the closed structure. He was never served with a written decision, nor informed of the reasons leading to the measure in question.
The Administrative Court of First Instance of Syros ruled that the detention of asylum seekers is “permissible by decision of the relevant director, exceptionally and only for one of the permitted reasons,” which are listed in Article 46 of law 4636/2019 (which incorporates provisions of Directive 2013/33/EU), a condition which was not met in the present case. Therefore, the court ruled that the exit ban was unlawful.
In response, the Greek Council for Refugees commented: “Generalised, systematic measures to restrict the freedom of asylum seekers are measures of dubious legality, incompatible with the basic standards of protection of human rights. Following the decision of the Greek justice system, the GCR calls on the authorities to immediately stop the illegal practice of imposing exit bans from closed reception centres, and to comply with the guarantees and standards of national and European legislation.”
The reception centre in Samos was fully funded by the EU and was inaugurated in September 2021 by the Minister of Immigration and Asylum. Two new centres in Kos and Leros were inaugurated on November 27, 2021 in the presence of EU Vice President Margaritis Schoinas.
Shortly after the structure was opened (and without any prior information and/or written information) a significant number of residents were prohibited from leaving the centre, which according to international standards is a de facto detention measure.
The GCR further claim that, “since November 17, as a rule, those who do not have an asylum seeker card have been barred from leaving the structure. The category of persons who do not have a card includes: a) new arrivals after the registration of the asylum application and pending the issuance of a card, b) those rejected in the second instance who have not filed or are unable to file a subsequent asylum application, c) those who have filed a subsequent application waiting for a decision on admissibility, d) those who were rejected in the first instance and have yet to file an appeal.”
The recent decision of the Administrative Court of First Instance of Syros confirms the arbitrary nature of this administrative practice.
With thanks to the Greek Council for Refugees (GCR) for contributing to this report.
A state that adheres to the rule of law must provide effective international protection to asylum seekers in accordance with the rules of international law, and Greece as an EU Member State is also obliged to adhere to EU rules.
However, in this case, the Administrative Court of First Instance of Syros ruled that measures prohibiting the movement of asylum seekers had been imposed in violation of domestic and international law.
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