Greek Ombudsman Condemns Samos CCAC’s Unlawful Practice of Requiring Asylum Seekers to Waive Their Right to Reception Conditions

Samos 24th September 2024 – The Greek Ombudsman has found that the Reception and Identification Service (RIS) at the Samos Closed Controlled Access Centre (CCAC) acted unlawfully. In 2023, asylum seekers were required by the RIS to waive their rights to reception conditions in order to be transferred to the mainland. The Ombudsman’s decision comes after I Have Rights, Avocats Sans Frontières, and Médecins Sans Frontières filed a joint complaint last year, challenging the legality of this practice.

The Ombudsman’s investigation revealed that, to be transferred from Samos to the mainland, asylum seekers were required by the RIS to sign away their right to access to vital reception conditions in Greece, including shelter, food, and medical services. This was while asylum seekers were forced to stay in what the Ombudsman described as “undeniably very difficult” living conditions at the Samos CCAC. 

As argued by the three organisations, the poor and overcrowded living conditions in the CCAC left asylum seekers with no real choice but to sign the waivers. In its decision the Ombudsman found that “it is understandable that the individuals signed the declarations to extricate themselves from these conditions” thus casting doubt on claims by the authorities that asylum seekers waived their rights voluntarily. 

Crucially, the Ombudsman also found that “a complete waiver of material reception conditions across the entire territory is not provided for by law”. As argued by the three organisations, the law only allows for suspension or restriction of such conditions in exceptional cases. Even in these circumstances, the law grants the Director of each Reception Centre the authority to issue referral decisions to regional services on the mainland, rather than forcing individuals to waive their rights.

After questioning the consensual basis of the waivers and highlighting the fact that such a practice is not prescribed by law, the Ombudsman requested the authorities to cease the practice and to restore material reception conditions to those asylum seekers who signed these declarations.