[EN] October 10, Sos Racismo Catalonia, the Migra Studium Foundation and Doctors of the World Catalonia, arranged , with the MEP Ernest Urtasun (Greens, Spain) an unannounced visit to the “center of foreigners’ internment” (CIE) of Zona Franca in Barcelona as part of the 2014 Open Access Now mobilization.

Please find below three extracts from the report of the visit in English, and in attachment the report and the press release by Sos Racisme (in Spanish).

• Access to Care:

“Medical care is still inadequate, despite some improvements. Psychological counseling – however necessary – is not provided. The infirmary lacks of resources and no assistance is provided at night time when most serious incidents in the centre took place (Idrissa Diallo’s death in January 2012, for example). Situations of violence were also reported when, at night, detainees ask the police, in charge of security within the centre, to transfer an inmate in need of care. It’s not a matter for the police to decide what patient can expect the day after and what patient must be treated immediately. The police is not trained for it and should not take on this responsibility.”

• NGO Access:

“Concerning NGOs access to the centre, they can access upon request of an inmate for “parlor visits”, which limits the control function recognized by the law. Mailboxes designed to requests for visits and other communications with NGOs, “judges of control” and the director of the centre, are located in the entrance, a space that is almost inaccessible for inmates.”

• Access to Information:

“Following the visit, we met with the Director of CIE and the “second provincial chief” […] It was not possible to obtain information on the number of deportations and grounds for detention.”

See also:

http://www.sosracisme.org/general/entitats-de-tancarem-el-cie-constaten-unes-deficients-condicions-higieniques-i-condicions-mediques-limitades-en-una-visita-al-centre-dintermanet-de-bcn

http://www.btv.cat/btvnoticies/2014/10/10/atencio-medica-insuficient-cie-zona-franca/

http://www.ara.cat/societat/Urtasun-insisteix-CIE-Zona-Franca_0_1227477402.html

http://www.lavanguardia.com/vida/20141010/54417800102/urtasun-dice-que-el-cie-no-cumple-los-requisitos-minimos-de-derechos-humanos.html