As of March 2022, 380 people reside in the EU-funded Closed Controlled Access Centre (C.C.A.C.) of Samos.
Daily struggles for the camp residents include access to basic healthcare, movement restrictions, and access to cash assistance.
Firstly, as of the end of March 2022, no doctor from EODY, the National PublicHealth Organization, has been operating in the closed facility of Samos since the end of February. In addition, access to the local hospital is also hindered by the lack of dedicated transportation, forcing camp residents to arrange and pay for their transportation between the camp and the hospital.
Secondly, since mid-November 2021, camp residents with a negative decision on their asylum claim are subjected to entry and exit restrictions, as their asylum applicant ID card is deactivated. People with rejections to their asylum claim are allowed to leave the facility but, once out, will not be able to re-enter it. As officially out of the asylum process, people with rejections who do not live in State facilities will have no access to any form of state support and will thus be at high risk of homelessness and destitution.
Finally, the competence over the EU-funded program of cash assistance for asylum seekers was taken over by the Ministry of Migration and Asylum from UNHCR in
October 2021. This caused delays in the payment of cash assistance, which in turn left thousands of asylum seekers across Greece without any money. While payments were supposed to be resumed in December, some residents in Samos camp have had to wait long times before receiving cash or have only received a part of the amount they were eligible for.
This situation report by Europe Must Act and the Samos Advocacy Collective was sent to Member of European Parliament Pietro Bartolo following an online meeting between him and a camp resident in Samos, who had the chance to voice the problems affecting the communities' lives in the closed facility.
The whole report is available below.