[JURIST] International medical aid group Doctors Without Borders [advocacy website] on Tuesday condemned [report, PDF] the unsanitary detention conditions of migrants found in Greece without correct paperwork. The report expressed concern over detention facilities where migrants are kept in large numbers in cramped, unsanitary conditions without access to medical care or basic hygiene. “The consequences on these people’s health are very serious,” said Ioanna Kotsioni, an immigration official with Doctors Without Borders. The organization criticized Greece for causing “unnecessary suffering and harm” and called on the country to reform its immigration laws and practices.

Last month Council of Europe (COE) [official website] Commissioner for Human Rights Nils Muiznieks [officail profile] urged [JURIST report] Greece not to include a clause in a draft immigration law that would allow the government to deport migrants following the rejection of their claims of abuse by law enforcement officials. In February 2013 the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention [official website] called on [JURIST report] Greece to improve detention conditions for migrants.