Background
The joined applications concerned five asylum seekers accommodated at Ritsona camp and three individual applicants housed at the Lesvos Reception and Identification Centre at Moria. They alleged overcrowding and inadequate sanitation, access to necessities, heating, food, water and electricity. Several applicants had serious vulnerabilities, including wheelchair dependence, trauma-related mental-health conditions, and HIV.
The Court found the evidence insufficient to establish an Article 3 claim concerning a hotel in Isthmia, Nea Kavala camp, and the Mavrovouni and Lesvos pre-removal facilities. It also rejected one applicant’s separate medical-care claim and an earlier Moria-conditions complaint as, respectively, manifestly ill-founded and out of time.
The Court’s Holding
The Court unanimously held that Greece violated Article 3 in respect of the applicants’ reception and living conditions at Ritsona and Moria during the periods specified in the appendix. The applicants had been subjected to extremely poor conditions, viewed in light of their particular vulnerability as asylum seekers.
It also found violations concerning two additional matters: Greece had hindered M.A.’s right of individual application under Article 34 by failing to implement an indicated interim measure, and it violated Article 3 by failing to ensure adequate specialised medical care for M.A., a torture survivor, and timely antiretroviral treatment for R.M., who was HIV-positive. The Court dismissed the Government’s exhaustion objections and awarded non-pecuniary damages, while rejecting costs claims for lack of supporting evidence.
Key Takeaways
- Severely deficient reception conditions for asylum seekers can breach Article 3, especially where applicants are vulnerable.
- Authorities must ensure prompt, appropriate specialised care for torture survivors and timely essential HIV treatment.
- An interim measure must be effectively implemented; leaving an applicant in the same incompatible conditions can violate Article 34.
Why It Matters
The judgment reinforces that Greece’s obligations toward asylum seekers extend beyond basic accommodation. Conditions and healthcare must be assessed in their practical effect on each applicant, including disability, mental-health needs, torture history, and serious illness.
It also confirms that the Government must show that proposed domestic remedies are effective in comparable reception-conditions cases, rather than relying on remedies established in materially different contexts.