ECtHR - Herman and Serazadishvili v. Greece, Applications Nos. 26418/11 and 45884/11

On the basis of previous judgments of the ECtHR concerning these detention facilities at a similar time, and given the corroboration of the applicants’ accounts with reports of the Committee for the Prevention of Torture, Amnesty International and UNHCR, the ECtHR found a violation of the applicants’ rights under Article 3.

The lack of facilities for personal hygiene, the lack of privacy in cells, and the three square metres of personal space were especially noted with regard to the first applicant. Regarding the second applicant, the ECtHR approved reports of inadequate recreation provision, overcrowding, and the lack of food.

Regarding the lawfulness of detention, the ECtHR concluded that, due to the failure of the Greek authorities to make the necessary arrangements with the Indonesian authorities for the issuance of travel documents, Greece had fallen short of due diligence and had therefore violated Article 5(1)(f). The ECtHR however ruled that the second applicant’s rights under the same article were not violated, since contact had been diligently made with the Georgian authorities, which justified the duration of detention.

The ECtHR finally found for both applicants a violation Article 5(4), concerning the lack of effective review of the lawfulness of detention. The ECtHR noted that the applicants’ detention took place before the entry into force of an amendment to Greek law explicitly providing for the review of detention legality. On the basis of previous judgments concerning detention prior to this amendment, the ECtHR found that the judicial authorities had an inadequate power to review detention, restricted as they were to reviewing solely on the grounds of risk of flight and danger to public order.