A/HRC/45/16/Add.1
applications are registered and examined on time; and that persons are not detained
in cases in which there is no reasonable prospect of return;
(b)
Give full effect to the right to seek asylum by:
(i)
Ensuring that no foreign citizen in detention who has applied for
international protection may be returned until the application has been
examined;
(ii)
In consultation with civil society and other organizations (for example,
bar associations), providing legal aid during the first-instance asylum
application, as well as interpretation services;
(iii) Ensuring that representatives from the Asylum Service visit detention
centres to assist those detained on criminal charges who are also applying for
asylum; in addition, ensuring that criminal charges do not affect the
determination of an asylum claim, consistent with the presumption of
innocence;
(c)
Address, as a matter of urgency, the situation of unaccompanied minors
who enter Greece in an irregular manner by:
(i)
Assigning a professional guardian to every unaccompanied minor, in
accordance with Law No. 4554/2018;
(ii)
Ending the detention of children under the protective custody scheme in
police stations or other facilities and ensuring that unaccompanied minors are
transitioned to community-based care, foster care, supported independent
living, and the gradual reduction of institutional structures;
(iii) Until the situation can be completely addressed, continuing to prioritize
the placement of unaccompanied minors in emergency accommodation or
shelters, which must be regularly visited by the Public Prosecutor;
(iv) Uniformly applying the provisions of Law No. 4375/2016 and Joint
Ministerial Decision No. 92490/2013 regarding age-assessment procedures,
particularly the presumption that a person is a child unless the contrary can be
proven;
(v)
Ceasing all administrative detention of migrants under the age of 18
years;
(d)
Conduct a thorough assessment of vulnerability prior to the issuance of a
detention order during immigration and asylum procedures, prioritizing the hiring of
staff to minimize delays after the time of arrival in conducting such assessment;
(e)
Provide sufficient opportunities to challenge detention and removal
decisions, including by expanding access to legal representation during the firstinstance hearing of asylum applications, extending the deadline for appealing firstinstance rejection of asylum applications, and ensuring that all avenues for such
challenges suspend the possibility of deportation until a final determination is made;
(f)
Promptly and fully investigate all allegations of pushbacks, including any
acts of violence or ill-treatment that may have occurred during such incidents, and
ensure that such practices do not occur in future.
111. The Working Group recommends that the Government take the following
measures in relation to the deprivation of liberty in the context of psychosocial
disability and social care:
(a)
Continue to prioritize deinstitutionalization whenever possible, making
greater use, in appropriate cases, of community-based care;
(b)
With regard to the care institution for children and young adults with
disabilities in Lechaina, continue with the deinstitutionalization process and provide it
with sufficient resources and personnel, in compliance with the Convention on the
Rights of Persons with Disabilities;
19
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