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The Greek island of Leros, in the Dodecanese, is known for its large natural harbour, imposing castle and picturesque villages.
But for about forty years the island was mainly known under a rather more negative epithet: “The Colony of Psychopaths”.
From 1958 to 1995, Leros was home to one of the largest psychiatric hospitals in Europe. In the ‘80s, a team of journalists and psychiatrists revealed the inhuman conditions under which the patients lived. UK broadsheet The Observer dubbed the facility Europe’s guilty secret and the asylum soon closed.
Fast forward to 2021, and the spectre of detention still hangs over Leros.