B. Foreign nationals held under aliens legislation; (Read full CPT report)
37. The delegation carried out a follow-up visit to the police detention centre
(Polizeianhaltezentrum – PAZ) at Vienna-Hernalser Gürtel in order to review the measures taken
by the Austrian authorities to implement the recommendations made by the CPT after the previous
visit to the establishment.30 38. Although its official capacity has been reduced since 2014 from 299 to 200 places, the PAZ
Vienna-Hernalser Gürtel remains the largest PAZ in Austria, accommodating male foreign nationals
subject to detention pending deportation (Schubhaft)31 and male asylum-seekers in police custody
(for up to 48 hours, before being transferred to an open reception centre).32 At the time of the 2021 visit, the PAZ was accommodating a total of 101 male adult foreign
nationals in Schubhaft and 32 male adult asylum-seekers in police custody.
As in 2014, the turnover was very high, since the PAZ continued to serve as a ‘hub’ for
immigration detainees from all over Austria who were held at Hernalser Gürtel usually for short
periods, prior to their deportation by air from Vienna International Airport. According to staff,
the PAZ accommodated in total about 13,000 persons per year. The great majority of foreign nationals
present at the time of the visit had been held in the PAZ for a period lasting between several days and
a few weeks. Nonetheless, around 20% had been detained for one month or longer, the longest stay
being seven months, reportedly due to pending court proceedings. 39. At the time of the visit, foreign nationals were being accommodated in four units of the PAZ.
The units on the ground, first and second floors were regular accommodation units with 48, 56 and
60 places respectively. Most cells had a capacity of eight beds, others six or four. The so-called “tower
unit” consisted of single cells for asylum-seekers and newly-arrived foreign nationals held in
quarantine (Covid-19). This unit also comprised the establishment’s security cells (see paragraphs 53
et seq.). In addition, a detention unit on the fourth floor was not in use and was kept as a reserve
capacity at the time of the visit.
40. The general legal framework governing the detention of foreign nationals under aliens
legislation set out in the Law on the Aliens Police (Fremdenpolizeigesetz)34 and the Ministry of the
Interior Detention Regulation (Anhalteordung) remained unchanged since the 2014 visit. That said,
in 2019, previously existing internal instructions were replaced by a new Ministry of the Interior
instruction (Erlass) on detention standards in PAZ (hereinafter: “PAZ Instruction”).35 This instruction
largely reflects recommendations made by the joint working group of the Ministry of the Interior and
the Ombudsman Board (NPM), which was established in 2014 in order to enhance relevant detention
standards (for instance, as regards the open-door regime, safeguards surrounding placement in
security cells and the arrangements for visits).
2. Ill-treatment
41. With one exception, the delegation received no allegations of ill-treatment by staff at the PAZ
Vienna-Hernalser Gürtel. The exception concerns a foreign national who claimed to have been
slapped by a police officer.
The CPT trusts that the management of the PAZ Hernalser Gürtel will remind police
officers deployed to the establishment that such behaviour is unacceptable.
3. Conditions of detention
a. material conditions
42. It is a matter of concern that, compared to 2014, the overall material conditions at the PAZ
had significantly deteriorated. Whilst acknowledging that the communal showers had been
refurbished and were thus in an acceptable state of repair and cleanliness, most parts of
the accommodation and communal areas were in an appalling state of repair with corridors, cells and
their sanitary annexes dilapidated and dirty. Further, most cell walls were scratched and/or smeared,
covered with graffiti and had crumbling paintwork, and some pieces of furniture were broken. 43. By letter of 17 December 2021, the Austrian authorities informed the CPT that the Ministry
of the Interior had allocated 100,000 Euros for “painting and renovation works in the detention areas”
(including cells, activity rooms, corridors, surgery and visitor area). This is a positive development.
The CPT wishes to receive updated information on the renovation works carried out at the PAZ
Vienna-Hernalser Gürtel. Further, the CPT recommends that the Austrian authorities take steps at the PAZ Hernalser Gürtel to ensure that all accommodation and communal areas are henceforth kept in an acceptable state of repair and cleanliness.
44. More generally, the material environment at the PAZ (which had originally been built as
a prison in 1910) was very carceral and oppressive, with heavy iron doors, barred windows and barred
gate partitions between the units. In the CPT’s view, such conditions are not suitable for holding
foreign nationals in Schubhaft for prolonged periods.
The CPT recommends that the Austrian authorities take measures to ensure that
foreign nationals are not detained at the PAZ Vienna-Hernalser Gürtel for more than short
periods (up to two weeks). In case of longer-lasting detention, the foreign nationals concerned
should be accommodated in a centre specifically designed for Schubhaft (such as Vordernberg
Immigration Detention Centre).
b. regime
45. The CPT welcomes the fact that the new PAZ Instruction expressly stipulates that, save for
clearly-defined circumstances, the open regime (offene Station) shall be the default regime
(Normalvollzug) for immigration detention and that newly-admitted foreign nationals shall be placed
in the open regime within 48 hours at the latest.36 It is also stipulated that, under the open regime, cell
doors shall be continuously unlocked from 8 a.m. until 9 p.m. The detention areas on the ground and
first floors were in principle designated as open units and cells on the other floors as closed units.
However, in the context of the visit, the delegation had received reports that the open regime
had in the past not always been implemented, apparently due to staff shortages.
Moreover, following the emergence of a number of Covid-19 cases, the open regime had been
temporarily fully suspended at the PAZ as of 8 November 2021. This suspension was still in force
at the time of the visit. Under the new closed regime, cell doors were usually opened only for
a maximum of one hour and 45 minutes per day.37 During cell opening times, foreign nationals could
access an outdoor yard, take a shower or make phone calls. For the rest of the time (i.e. more than
22 hours per day), they were left to their own devices, locked in their cells, in groups of up to eight
persons, their only occupation being to watch television (if their cell had a functioning TV-set)38 or
reading.
Many foreign nationals interviewed by the delegation were clearly very distressed by this regime. The overall situation, with up to eight foreign nationals usually of different cultural and linguistic backgrounds – most of them in a situation of personal anguish/hardship and uncertainty – locked together in dilapidated cells for 22 hours a day in enforced idleness, was perceived by many foreign nationals as particularly oppressive. The situation was even more of a strain for those who had been staying at the PAZ for several weeks (see also paragraphs 63 and 64).
The Committee acknowledges the difficulties caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, and it
understands that, at the time of the visit, newly-arrived foreign nationals had to be placed in quarantine
and contacts between detainees reduced. However, the measures imposed appeared to be
disproportionate, also bearing in mind that the unused detention unit could have been used to reduce
the number of foreign nationals per room and to allow for more out-of-cell time on a rotation basis.
46. During the end-of-visit talks, the delegation made an immediate observation under Article 8,
paragraph 5, of the Convention, urging the Austrian authorities to take immediate steps to ensure that
the out-of-cell time for foreign nationals held at the PAZ Hernalser Gürtel is increased considerably. By letters dated 17 December 2021 and 4 February 2022, the Austrian authorities informed
the CPT that the above-mentioned strict suspension of the open regime had been lifted on 7 December
2021 and that accordingly, “detainees awaiting deportation are held in open wards between 8 a.m.
and 5.30 p.m.”. However, they also stated that the simultaneous opening of only two or three cells
per ward or residential group was permitted, due to the ongoing epidemic.
The CPT recommends that the Austrian authorities fully implement as soon as possible
the open regime at the PAZ Vienna-Hernalser Gürtel, in line with the requirements set out in
the PAZ Instruction (i.e. with the cell doors being unlocked from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.). The Committee would like to be informed, within three months, about the steps taken
to implement this recommendation.
47. The information gathered during the visits suggests that, prior to the above-mentioned
Covid-19 related restriction imposed on 8 November 2021, foreign nationals accommodated on the
ground floor had, in principle, unrestricted access to an outdoor yard during daytime and those held
on the first floor could access a yard upon request, while others were usually offered one hour of
outdoor access per day. In addition, detainees had access to a communal room on each floor equipped
with table football and/or table tennis as well as with a table. Apart from that there were apparently
no sports facilities or other activities on offer. Moreover, several communal rooms were lacking any chairs and the PAZ library was only
rudimentarily equipped with a few books in German, English and Arabic and no other reading
material (such as newspapers and magazines). It is also regrettable that, despite the specific
recommendation made after the 2014 visit, the outdoor exercise yards were still not equipped with
any shelter against inclement weather.
The CPT recommends that these shortcomings be remedied at the PAZ Vienna-
Hernalser Gürtel without delay.
