UNITED NATIONS Press Release 22 November 2004 The Committee against Torture this morning began its consideration of the fourth periodic report of Greece on how that country gives effect to the provisions of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. Introducing the report, Nestor Kourakis of the Ministry of Justice of Greece said that as a result of the discussions that had taken place between the Greek Government, the United Nations' human rights committees and the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture of the Council of Europe, Greece was in a better position to address human rights issues, especially with regard to minorities such as the Roma. He referred to the visit of the Commissioner for Human Rights in 2002 who stressed that the Greek authorities were increasingly aware of the needs to improve the conditions of the Roma. Serving as Rapporteur for the report of Greece was Committee Expert Ole Vedel Rasmussen who thanked the delegation for the report which was received only six months after the Committee considered the third periodic report of Greece. Mr. Rasmussen noted that the Committee had previously expressed concern about the lack of proper training for medical officials in Greece and asked the delegation if the Government was considering taking additional steps in that regard. While welcoming the work of the Rehabilitation Centre for Torture Victims, the Rapporteur asked for information on the Centre, in particular with regard to its medical facilities. Yu Mengjia, the Committee Expert serving as Co-Rapporteur for the report, thanked the delegation for the report and the detailed replies. He said he was pleased to note the multiple new measures taken to better implement the provisions of the Convention, in particular the new Prison Code and the legislative provisions and efforts to fight human trafficking as well as the State party's steps to solve the issue of prison overcrowding. Among the topics he raised were the cases of discrimination against Roma and Albanians and allegations of some 500 missing children. Other Committee Experts raised questions on issues pertaining to, among other things, medical training for prison officials; the use of evidence obtained by methods of torture; the process of sending foreign prisoners back to their country of origin; treatment of Roma and other minority groups in Greece; and alleged cases of torture by the police against migrants or asylum seekers. Also representing Greece were representatives of the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Public Order, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Permanent Mission of Greece to the United Nations Office at Geneva. The delegation will return to the Committee at 4 p.m. on Tuesday, 23 November, to provide additional responses to the Committee. Greece is among the 138 States parties to the Convention and as such it must present periodic reports to the Committee on how it is implementing the provisions of the Convention. When the Committee reconvenes at 3 p.m. this afternoon, it will discuss its methods of work and individual communications in private session. Report of Greece The fourth periodic report of Greece (CAT/C/61/Add.1) refers to the new Prison Code of 1999 which enacted a number of progressive provisions with regard to the improvement of living conditions in prisons, the educational and professional training of inmates, conditional release and social rehabilitation, having as its aim to prevent the inhuman treatment of prisoners in Greek prisons. Concerning complaints from prisoners for acts of torture by staff of the Ministry of Justice, none have been reported since the consideration of the last report of Greece in May 2001, the report states. On the basis of constitutional provisions, torture and any insult against human dignity are penalized and constitute an independent crime as defined in the Penal Code. According to the law "entry and stay of foreign citizens on Greek territory", in force since June 2001, provision is made for the possibility of a temporary suspension of the deportation order by the General Secretary of the region for humanitarian reasons concerning the life or health of the person and his or her family. The report mentions that the overcrowding of Greek prisons has not been resolved and is the result of the great increase in imported criminality, as almost half of the prisoners are aliens of nearly 100 nationalities. Therefore, although space is available for 5,300 prisoners, the inmate population stands at 8,600. In response, the Ministry of Justice has prepared a building plan for the construction of 10 new prisons of which two are rehabilitation centres for drug addicts. Moreover, the treatment of all prisoners, aliens and nationals, male and female and juvenile, is absolutely equal without any distinction, the report states. Coordinated efforts are being made to eliminate the phenomenon of extended detention of aliens. The strategy of the Ministry of Public Order includes the improvement of detention conditions, especially of aliens who are detained at police stations awaiting deportation. Their situation, the report states, is a matter of great concern to the Government which has been making efforts to resolve it. The principle of non-refoulment applies to asylum cases where the country of origin is considered unsafe and the person requesting asylum may be subjected to unfavourable treatment in the event of return. Concerning human trafficking, the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Public Order established a project management team to handle the problem of trade in human beings and of the protection of their rights. Presentation of Report NESTOR KOURAKIS, Advisor to the Ministry of Justice of Greece, said that as a result of the discussions that had taken place between the Greek Government, United Nations' human rights committees and the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture of the Council of Europe, Greece was in a better position to address human rights issues, especially with regard to minorities such as the Roma. He referred to the visit of the Commissioner for Human Rights in 2002 who stressed that the Greek authorities were increasingly aware of the needs to improve the conditions of the Roma in Greece and had instituted a programme in the areas of education, health, culture, sport and employment opportunities for the Roma. Response to Questions Responding to questions prepared by the Committee Experts in advance, the delegation of Greece said that concerning the exercise of the right of detainees to communicate with their families, according to the Penal Code, all detainees had the right to have communication with family members extending up to cousins as long as they did not act as a negative influence on the detainee. There have been no serious problems up to now with regard to this provision. This policy also applied to those detainees in police custody who also had the right to have personal or telephone communication with their relatives as well as with diplomatic representatives of their countries. As for specific data systematically recorded upon registration of a detainee by the police, the delegation said that as per regulatory order number 6 of 2003, registers at police stations for detainees described the offence of the detainee, personal data and recorded the length of detention. In response to a question, the delegation noted that ever since the ratification of the Convention against Torture in 1988, Greek courts had been interpreting the relevant provisions of the Convention in proceedings. With regards to specific safeguards against non-refoulment, the delegation said during 2003, there had only been one case of a person who was expelled to his country after his asylum application had been finally rejected. In general, however, this was not a policy of the Greek State. Concerning the allegations by non-governmental organizations and international organizations on the use of force in the context of deportation, the delegation stated that there had been no allegations concerning penitentiary staff on acts of torture or similar acts. There was a separation of judicial powers and executive powers and it was not possible for the Government to intervene in the work of the judiciary. Concerning instructions for border guards, the delegation noted that in the past this had been an acute problem. Border guards now received basic training in constitutional law and human rights issues. Since 2003, there was a new law concerning the bearing of weapons by the police officers and border guards that gave specific criteria as to when a police officer could make use of his gun. This abolished the previous law of 1944, the delegation added. In response to questions on asylum requests, the delegation noted that in 2003, some 8,100 asylum requests were submitted (from Iraq, Pakistan, Iran, Afghanistan, Myanmar, Nigeria, Somalia, Bangladesh, Sudan and Turkey); of these, 88 per cent were men between 18 and 40, and 12 per cent were women between 18 to 40. Moreover, protection was provided to some 40 foreigners in 2003 on humanitarian grounds. The delegation added that another 29,000 illegal immigrants were arrested in 2003 of which 14,000 were expelled from Greece. With regard to data on persons tried and convicted for punishments received for the crime of torture according to article 137A of the Penal Code, the delegation indicated that in such cases if there was a conviction of six months imprisonment or more, the police officer lost his job. In response to a question the delegation referred to article 8 of the Criminal Code which stated that offences committed abroad were always punishable under domestic legislation. If a person from another country breeched Greek law while in Greece, he or she could be convicted by Greek courts, the delegation added. As for the implementation of training programmes for police officers for the prevention of torture, the delegation noted that there were courses in the police academy on human rights which were a top priority with the educational programmes of the Greek police academies. There were various programmes depending on the level of the police officers and courses were offered on civil and social rights dealing with the matter of the elimination of racial discrimination, humanitarian law, the treatment of people belonging to minorities and on torture and inhuman and degrading treatment. Additional courses were offered on cultural issues about minorities, Islamophobia, and on the Roma. specialized training which was also offered for border guards where the trainees were taught about the various human rights international instruments. As for the status on the draft code of ethics, the delegation said up until now, the draft code had not become a presidential decree although the Government was giving this due consideration as per a recommendation by the Commission of the Ministers of the Council of Europe. In response to a question, the delegation referred to the Greek National Commission for Human Rights which began its work in 2000 and had issued a report on the conditions of detention in Greece in 2002 which was included in the annual report of the Commission. The report took into account the remarks of the Committee against Torture as well as the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture of the Council of Europe. With regard to the overcrowding of prisons in Greece, a member of the delegation referred to the plans by the Ministry of Justice to construct another 10 prisons, which were currently under construction. Asked what authority could order the opening of a criminal investigation in cases of torture, the delegation said that according to the Criminal Procedure Code all public servants had an obligation to report without any delay all such offences which were observed during the exercise of their duties. Private persons also had the right to report such offences. An investigator could also start an investigation ex-officio, without a complaint, the delegation added. Regarding the measures taken to combat racism and discrimination, in particular racially motivated violence against Roma and other minority groups or foreigners in relation to the Convention, the delegation said this was an important problem. With regard to violations against the Roma, all cases were properly investigated and action was taken by the authorities. The Greek Government had initiated a six-year programme (2002 to 2008) to ensure better living conditions for the Roma. In response to a question about the allegations by non-governmental organizations that judicial investigations were not opened into complaints of ill-treatment in a number of cases, the delegation stressed that when a case came to light, justice was applied and the person was punished by the authorities. However, information was not always made available to the authorities. In this case, the delegation called on non- governmental organizations to share such information on cases with the authorities in order for them to prosecute such cases. As to the supervision of detention facilities, the delegation said there were measures taken to ensure the good conditions of Greek prisons and in 2002 a new body of inspectors - "Rambo" – was set up; the head of this body was an ex-prosecutor. The delegation added that the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees as well as the Greek Human Rights Commission had the right to visit prisons in Greece. Moreover, there were four prisons in which prosecutors had permanent residence in order to monitor the situation. As to a question on compensation, the delegation noted that since 2001 there had been new legislation which made things easier for a person to receive compensation when they had been victims of torture or suffered such related treatment in Greece. According to the Criminal Procedure Code, foreigners also had the right to compensation. Asked to provide information on the modalities of cooperation and support afforded to non-governmental organizations offering medical rehabilitation to victims, the delegation said there was a specific centre dealing with this issue where all such cases of torture were examined in all details. The centre – Medical Rehabilitation Centre for Torture Victims – was established in 1989 and had a staff of 15 persons who were doctors, psychologists and lawyers, among others. Moreover, money had been donated to this centre from the European Union and the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture. Concerning the number of imprisoned persons in Greece, the delegation provided the following information: at the end of 2002 there were some 8,400 detainees for 5,400 prison spaces in Greek prisons. Today, there were over 8,600 detainees for the same number of spaces. The delegation said that for every 100 persons who were given prison sentences, only 5 or 6 went to prison; the number of prisoners in Greece was low compared to the number of convictions; some 78 per cent. The overcrowding of prisons came as a result of aliens committing crimes, the delegation added. In Greece, aliens made up about one tenth of the overall population. Among other measures, the Ministry of Justice was taking steps to increase the possibility of alternative punishments to prison sentences. As to a question on human trafficking and the new law on the issue of 2002, the delegation said there was no specific data on crimes of this type since the law was relatively new. The new law was very helpful to the prosecutors who had cracked nearly 50 criminal networks which had been involved in human trafficking. Under the new law, some 280 perpetrators had been convicted and 93 women victims had been identified, many of whom were placed under the protection of the State. Concerning violence against women, the Greek Government had been studying the possibility of adopting new legislation to address the problem of violence against women. For the time being, such crimes were dealt with in the context of the Criminal Code. The delegation added that prevention measures for such acts were also being taken by the Government. Concerning illegal proceedings against unaccompanied alien minors, the delegation referred to new legislation on this problem. In addition, the delegation noted that new legislation had been enacted to try to solve the problem of children of aliens who had legal residence in Greece. This was a change with respect to the previous Aliens Act of 2001. As for the ratification of the Optional Protocol of the Convention, the delegation noted that the matter was being studied at present by the Government and that in general Greece was in favour of any control of acts of torture and fully supported the Optional Protocol to the Convention. With regard to measures taken by the Government to respond to the threats to terrorism, the delegation said the Government had introduced two specific laws concerning terrorism, in 2002 and in 2004, and in all cases the Government had tried to make it clear that the rules targeted only terrorist suspects and did not compromise the human rights of the individual. Discussion OLE VEDEL RASMUSSEN, the Committee Expert serving as Rapporteur for the report of Greece, thanked the delegation for the report which was received only six months after the Committee considered the third periodic report of Greece. He noted that the report was not in accordance with the guidelines of submitting periodic reports. Mr. Rasmussen noted that the Committee had previously expressed concern about the lack of proper training for medical officials in Greece and asked the delegation if the Government was considering taking additional steps in that regard. While welcoming the work of the Rehabilitation Centre for Torture Victims, the Rapporteur asked for further information on the Centre, in particular its medical facilities. Among other things, the Rapporteur asked questions on interrogation procedures; investigations into acts of torture; statistics for those who had been tortured and who may have received compensation; the Ombudsman; the use of evidence obtained by methods of torture; the process of sending foreign prisoners back to their country of origin; and the conditions under which Albanians were being held when they were detained by border guards. YU MENGJIA, the Committee Expert serving as Co-Rapporteur, thanked the delegation for the report and the detailed replies although he noted that not all questions posed by the Committee had been answered fully. He said he was pleased to note the multiple new measures taken to better implement the provisions of the Convention, in particular the new Prison Code, and the legislative provisions and efforts to fight human trafficking as well as the State party's steps to solve the issue of prison overcrowding. The Co-Rapporteur asked the delegation to shed light on the problems relating to ethic and inter-racial discrimination, in particular the discrimination against Roma and Albanians. He said many cases of ill-treatment against vulnerable groups reportedly took place upon their arrest by police. Mr. Yu also asked for information with regard to allegations of some 500 missing children. He also asked the delegation for information with regard to access to detention facilities; access to legal aid; and reported torture by the police against migrants or asylum seekers. Another Expert asked for information about the cases of the destruction of Roma housing settlements. He also asked for additional information as regard to asylum seekers, while referring specifically to cases where asylum seekers were allegedly deprived of legal proceedings and subjected to ill-treatment.
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