ΑΛΛΗΛΕΓΓΥΗ ΣΤΗΝ ΕΕ: ΕΞΕΛΙΞΕΙΣ ΣΤΟ ΠΕΔΙΟ ΤΗΣ ΠΡΟΣΦΥΓΙΚΗΣ ΠΡΟΣΤΑΣΙΑΣ ΚΑΙ ΠΡΟΚΛΗΣΕΙΣ ΣΤΗΝ ΕΕ ΚΑΙ ΣΤΗΝ ΕΛΛΑΔΑ

220 Examining applications under administrative detention By definition, an asylum seeker is a person fleeing his country of nationality or ha- bitual place of residence, in the case of stateless applicants, due to the fact that he or she is facing a well-founded fear of persecution for one of the reasons recog- nized in the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees 2 , or dealing with a threat of serious harm in the case of subsidiary protection 3 . The abovementioned imply that a person in need of international protection is in a particularly vulner- able place and probably has already dealt with a series of experiences out of the ordinary, that have burdened his psychology or/and his physical health 4 . Be that as it may, an asylum seeker owes to present his claim to the examiner who is charged with the duty to decide whether he fulfills or not the criteria for refugee or subsidiary status protection. For this purpose, the applicant supports his statements by participating in a personal interview, during which the validity and credibility of his claim are being assessed and the burden of proof is normally shared between the asylum seeker and the examiner. That implies that the in- terview process constitutes one of the most important parts for refugee status determination and is consequently a demanding and rather stressful procedure, in terms of outcome 5 . According to experts, one of the factors that influence a person’s interview performance is his psychological status, which may be strongly affected by their personal background and the agony regarding their future, which is interconnected with the conclusion of their application 6 . As described by Gabriel García Márquez, ‘Life is not what one lived, but what One remembers and how One remembers it, in order to recount it’. During an asylum interview process, the applicant is expected to describe his whole life, with par- ticular emphasis on events that are characterized by a special emotional load. What is more, many asylum seekers are not able to produce legitimate papers that prove their identity, nationality and generally their personal data. Sometimes, even if he or she is able to submit documents, they might not be accepted as licit Nomiki Bibliothiki, 2016, pages 241-268. For a critical overview of the Greek practices concerning administration, see Koutsouraki E. , The indefinite Detention of undesirable and unreturnable third-country nationals, Refug. Surv. Q., 2017. 2. Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, UN General Assembly, 28 July 1951, art.1A(2). 3. Directives 2004/83/EC and 2011/95/EU. 4. Guidelines on the Applicable Criteria and Standards relating to the Detention of Asylum- Seekers and Alternatives to Detention 2012, Guideline 9.1 available at http://www. unhcr.org/publications/legal/505b10ee9/unhcr-detention-guideline. 5. Guidelines on the Applicable Criteria and Standards relating to the Detention of Asylum- Seekers and Alternatives to Detention 2012, par.190-210. 6. Suliman A. , Asylum Seekers Views and Experiences from Different Types of Interviews, 2015 University of Gavle, Programme in Social Work, Specialization International Social Work.