The local authorities are moving: Today, 200 people detained in Pagani, mainly family and women with children, will be released from that horrible jail. They will not be thrown into the streets, rather they will be brought to an existing facility. They will also receive the “white paper”, giving them a semi-legal status for 30 days and granting some freedom of movement within this short period.
We welcome the release of the 200 from Pagani. However, we adamently continue to demand the immediate release of all prisoners from Pagani, the closure of Pagani as a detention centres and the subsequent transformation of Pagani into an open transit centre for refugees offer shelter and food, but no detention.
In the meanwhile, we demand that any refugees and migrants arriving in Lesvos receive the “white paper” immediately without being detained.
The authorities has shown that they are able to move. After this initial step, they now need to take the next step and close Pagani.
