Today the Commissioner published an exchange of letters with the Minister of Citizen Protection of Greece, Michalis Chrysochoidis, and the Alternate Minister for Migration Policy of Greece, Giorgos Koumoutsakos, concerning the plans to transfer migrants from the Aegean islands to the mainland and set up closed reception centres on those islands, as announced by the Government a few days ago.
The Commissioner requests information about the deprivation of liberty regime that will be applicable to the new facilities that the Government plans to build, whether the government intends to move all the people who have not yet been transferred to the mainland at the time of their opening to the new closed centres, and if all new arrivals will be housed in these facilities..
The Commissioner also asks for clarifications concerning the decision to opt for closed reception and identification centres, the safeguards that the Greek government intends to put in place in order to ensure that detention is used as a measure of last resort and details about the government’s plans as regards alternatives to detention on the islands, notably for vulnerable people, including children.
Lastly, pending the implementation of the announced measures, she requests information about any immediate measures to improve the living conditions of those who remain in and around the existing facilities on the Aegean islands.