Author
Overall conditions
In 2023, the NPM visited all three immigration detention centres and published comprehensive reports which provide detailed description of admission processes, (lack of) health care and vulnerability screening, living conditions, regime of life, access to rights of persons deprived of their liberty and other aspects of foreign nationals’ stay in immigration detention. All information from this Chapter is extracted from these Reports. The author of this Report would like to praise NPM for their comprehensive analysis of immigration detention facilities in Serbia.[1] It is also important to outline that most of the findings are related to foreign nationals detained under the Foreigners Act and for the purpose of forcible removal, but who could be in need of international protection and who might face risks of refoulement or chain-refoulement in third countries or countries of origin and for whom access to asylum should be safeguarded.
Detention Centre in Padinska Skela
Living conditions and regime of life
DC Padinska Skela is a one-story building which comprises the admission part – where police inspection premises are located – and the accommodation part which is divided into two wings of the building. Both wings have five rooms each and each wing has common area which is considered to be the leisure and dining room, which also has toilets and bathrooms. Also, each wing has a small outdoor area. Due to the ongoing reconstruction, only one wing was operational in 2023, while dormitories in the other wing which is under the reconstruction are used only when the number of detainees increases.
All bedrooms are of the same size, and they measure 21 m2 and they are intended to accommodate of 5 persons. Each person has at least 4,1 m2 and if we take that into account, official capacities of the DC Padinska Skela should be maximum 55 persons. All rooms have large windows with metal bars, which are wide enough and suitable for natural ventilation. Both natural and artificial lights are satisfactory. light. Each dormitory has a separate sanitary area, which is around 1.5 m2 and which is consisted of a stool and a sink. NPM reported poor conditions of sanitary facilities in dormitories and common areas.
Each room has 5 beds, a larger closet with shelves for the storage of personal belongings, groceries, as well as a table with several chairs or benches. The beds are equipped with mattresses and sheets, and which are washed once a week. Still, NPM reported the issue of bed bugs.
The hygiene of the dormitories and other rooms is maintained daily and the Shelter provides them with the means to this end. Hot water is available all the time, and foreigners who do not have means for maintaining personal hygiene receive them upon verbal request. Smoking is allowed in the outdoor area and in the common area.
The open-door regime exists during most of the day, except between 14:00 – 17:00. During the evening, all detainees are locked up in their rooms. The common area has several larger tables and chairs and a television with cable television. The room has several windows, air conditioning and proper artificial lighting.
Small outdoor areas are fenced off and consists of two benches and two fountains. A smaller roof can provide protection from the weather precipitation.
Food is served three times a day. Cooked food is provided, and all three meals are caloric, and are adapted to the religious beliefs. Fresh fruits and vegetables are included in the diet every day, and milk and other dairy products at least 3 times a week. Foreigners are also provided with bottled water. Meals are served in the dining room, except for dinner, which is served in the dormitories. The shelter does not have a canteen in its structure, but there is a possibility to order groceries from police officers and with the money they deposit.
Admission, health care, vulnerably screening and grounds for detention
Upon arrival, all foreign nationals are introduced in the admission record which contains personal data: name, date of birth and citizenship, as well as data related to detention in DC, date and grounds for detention, case file number of the expulsion and detention order and which organizational within the MoI-BDA rendered such decision and transferred the individual to the DC. Every foreigner also has a personal file where the above-outlined decisions are kept.
Immediately after the admission, police officers perform an examination of the foreigner and his personal belongings. The certificate on the personal belongings which are confiscated (mobile phones, money, documents, etc.) is issued to every foreigner. Every newly admitted foreign national is provided with the set of clean sheets. They are then served with the leaflet of rights of persons deprived of their liberty in drafted in line with the Criminal Procedure Code, but not with the leaflet which contains an adequate list of their rights and responsibilities as immigration detainees, as well as the applicable procedures such as expulsion and asylum procedure.
According to the available documentation that NPM has analysed, a significant number of foreign nationals were detained on the grounds of national security reasons and with additional reasoning containing the quote that their stay in Serbia is aimed at ‘committing criminal offences’. NPM outlined that this cannot be the grounds for deprivation of liberty, especially because their forcible removal was not realistic. Thus, most of the foreign nationals were arbitrarily deprived of their liberty according to the NPM and the records have shown that most of them have been released after the maximum of 180 days.
Another flagrant example of arbitrary deprivation of liberty was observed by the NPM and related to the detention of a foreign national whose extradition procedure was ongoing and who was imposed with the measure of prohibition of leaving the place of residency, which is a measure related to limitation of the right to freedom of movement, and not limitation of the right to liberty and security. In this way, the person concerned remained in the DC Padinska Skela for more than 8 months.
There is no health care screening nor vulnerability assessment upon admission which has been a long-lasting recommendation of the NPM.
Detention Centre in Plandište
DC Plandište is a metal container one-story building, which consists of a large central corridor that runs along its entire length, with rooms on both sides. Its total capacity is 12 rooms on 1 side and 10 rooms on the other. Rooms for detained foreign nationals are of the same size and identically equipped – 13 m2 -, two bunk beds which are equipped with mattresses and sheets. Each room has air conditioners, while during the winter period mobile heaters are provided. In addition, there are lockers for personal belongings.
All bedrooms have large windows, which are with the outer sides fenced with metal bars, allowing for sufficient fresh air inflow and natural light. Artificial lighting is also appropriate. Bed linen is changed weekly. Hygiene in the rooms was at a good level and the rooms are cleaned daily.
There are no toilets or bathrooms in the rooms, but there are four shared ones. Sanitary shower units and rooms are in a very bad condition and hygiene is not satisfactory according to the NPM. The glass above the sink was broken. One the biggest issues reported are taps and showers that are broken so that they can hardly be used. Detained foreign nationals are allowed to use showers every day and according to the NPM reports, hygienic packages are distributed to everyone who does not have means to afford them. Smoking in the dormitories is not allowed.
DC Plandište also has common area which is around 55 m2 equipped with tables, chairs and air conditioning, TV and sink with a fountain. This room also serves as dining room and is connected through the window with the room from which they are served meals. Multiple windows enable an adequate flow of natural lighting and fresh air. The room has air conditioners and artificial lighting is appropriate.
The space for staying in the fresh air is a concrete area of about 65 m2 and it can be accessed from one room that is not used for the accommodation of foreigners and is fenced off with three sides. This space is available to foreigners every day for no less than two hours, but mostly, if the weather conditions allow it, they can stay outside as long as they want during the day. The space is equipped with several benches, there are no props for physical education exercise, nor other facilities, nor canopies for shelter from atmospheric precipitation.
Meals for detainees are provided from a local restaurant that delivers them meals three times per day, and on the basis of a pre-arranged weekly menu. Menus are available only in Serbian language. Bottled water is regularly provided. Fruit and vegetables are part of the diet. Bearing in mind that most of the foreigners who are detained are Muslims, care is taken to ensure that meals are in accordance with religious beliefs.
The detention facility has its own kitchen, which is mainly used for sharing meals, as well as for preparing of hot drinks. Dining is in the living room, with the possibility of exception when it is also allowed in rooms, for example during fasting. There is no canteen in the facility but there is a possibility for foreigners to receive packages with the desired food items.
Admission, health care, vulnerably screening and grounds for detention
A record is kept of all detained foreigners (Foreigner’s Book), in which they have their personal data: name, date of birth and citizenship, as well as data related to detention and expulsion. Immediately after admission, police officers perform an examination of the foreigner and his personal belongings which are confiscated and deposited in specially designated storage and foreigners are issued certificates. Afterwards, they are provided with clean bed linen and allocated to one of the dormitories. They are also served with the document setting out their rights and responsibilities in line with the Criminal Procedure Code, and thus are not informed on all the rights and obligations which are related to their immigration status, including the right to apply for asylum. House rules are available on all the relevant languages. They are no employed interpreters.
For most of the foreigners, they are detained for the purpose of forcible removal, but in most of the cases, as noted by the NPM, there was no prospect of removal and thus, their detention was assessed as arbitrary. Since DC Plandište has become operational, not a single foreign national was forcibly removed and what happened in the end is that all of them are released after the expiry of the maximum 180 days. NPM criticized the fact that immigration detention was used as a measure against those foreign nationals for whom BIA made a negative security assessment.
There is no medical screening nor any other type of vulnerability assessment.
Detention Center in Dimitrovgrad
Living conditions and regime of life
DC Dimitrovgrad is container one-story building, which consists of a larger central corridor with rooms from both sides. There are 24 dormitories in total which are of the same size with the surface area of about 15.6 m2 and with the capacity for 4 people. Each one has two bunk beds and two larger cupboards for storing personal belongings. Beds are equipped with new mattresses and complete bedding, which was clean during the NPM visit. Each dormitory has large windows with the metal bars, and which allows
sufficient flow of fresh air and natural light. Artificial lighting is also suitable, and in each dormitory, there is an air conditioner. The dormitories assessed by the NPM were considered to be in good condition. The common area is around 60m2 also serves as a dining room and due to the open door policy, it is available to all detainees throughout the day. The area is about 60 m2 and is equipped with tables and chairs, TV and two sinks with water taps. This room also air-condition and has several windows with bars.
The facility also has 4 shared toilets/bathrooms, with sufficient sanitary facilities (a total of 8 shower cabins and toilets and 10 sinks each), which were found to be clean and in good condition. Hot water is available at all times, and personal maintenance is provided. Foreigners also receive hygiene kits for personal hygiene and they are also provided with the powder for manual washing of personal laundry, which can be done in shared toilets. There are no washing machines. Smoking is allowed in the common area.
The outdoor area is made of concrete walls and is fenced off and is around 50 m2. The area us completely unequipped.
Meals are distributed from the nearby restaurant three times per day and they are in line with religious needs of detainees and contains also vegetables and fruits. Potable tap water is available, but bottled water is also provided. There is no canteen, but several times per week police officers, with the money deposited to the accounts of detainees purchase from the lists they provide.
Admission, health care, vulnerably screening and grounds for detention
The admission is facilitated in the same manner as in DC Padinska Skela and DC Plandište, meaning that newly arrived foreigners are introduced in the central register which contains personal data and case files related to their expulsion and detention. After they are searched, their personal belongings such as cell phones, money and other prohibited objects are confiscated after which detainees are issued with a certificate. They are also issued with the document in writing detailing the rights of criminal suspects and in line with the Criminal Procedure Code. Rights and responsibilities, as well as the information which is related to expulsion and detention procedure and other applicable procedures, including the asylum, is not provided, which was criticized by the NPM.
NPM again observed that significant number of detainees is arbitrarily detained, meaning that their forcible removal is not possible, and that the grounds are again based on the security assessment of BIA. This was again qualified as unacceptable practice by the NPM.
There is no health care screening or any kind of vulnerability assessment screening, nor there are interpreters available.
Conditions in penitentiary facilities
Conditions in the penitentiaries where asylum seekers and migrants are detained if convicted in misdemeanour proceedings vary depending on the individual facility. The Serbian system for the implementation of criminal sanctions has suffered from overcrowding for many years, while conditions in certain facilities may amount to inhumane and degrading treatment as a result of poor living conditions, a lack of meaningful activities and the lack of communication with the staff and outside world.
The penitentiaries that are located in the border zones are the ones in which persons likely in need of international protection are usually detained at, such as the County Prison in Vranje (Southern border zone) and the Correctional Facility in Sremska Mitrovica (Western border area).
Conditions in transit zones
The airport transit premises have a size of 80m2 and are equipped with 25 sofas and some blankets. There are no adequate conditions for sleeping and the ventilation is unsatisfactory. The foreigners are locked up all day long. The toilet is located within the premises and is in an acceptable condition.
In 2019, the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture described material conditions as inadequate for the purposes of detention. The main shortcomings are described as follows:
‘The material conditions in this room were inadequate for the purposes of detention, the main shortcomings being the absence of beds and heating, deplorable hygienic and sanitary conditions and constant artificial lighting. When tested, the tap water was not running, the premises visibly had not been cleaned for an extended period of time and all seven persons who were held there were obliged to spend the night sitting in armchairs. However, they had all received meals provided by the airport police.’[2]
The newly established premises at the Nikola Tesla airport are still not considered as suitable for the conduct of the asylum procedure. There are no reports which describe the conditions in the new detention rooms.
[1] NPM, Извештај о посети Прихватилишту за странце у Падинској Скели, no. 22900, 12 September 2023, available at: https://bit.ly/3K0Etnr; Извештај о посети Прихватилишту за странце у Пландишту, no. 370, 9 January 2024, available at: https://bit.ly/3wCECu2; Извештај о посети Прихватилишту за странце у Димитровграду, no. 7681, 31 March 2023, available at: https://bit.ly/4bJCgIR.
[2] Special Rapporteur on Torture, Visit to Serbia and Kosovo – Report of the Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, A/HRC/40/59/Add.1, 25 January 2019, available at: https://bit.ly/47OzTm7, para. 48.