Quebec ready for refugees, ministers say
But few logistical details provided as province prepares for arrivals
“It’s clear that Quebec is ready,” federal Immigration Minister John McCallum told reporters after meeting with a dozen groups involved in the effort to welcome 25,000 Syrian refugees to Canada by the end of February.
But with the first expected to arrive within the next week or so, he and his provincial counterpart, Kathleen Weil, were short on specifics Thursday.
McCallum said he doesn’t know when the first planeload of refugees will arrive, but that it will be in “not many days from now.” It’s unclear whether that plane will land in Montreal or Toronto, or in which cities the first refugees will ultimately settle.
Montreal will welcome the bulk of the 6,300 Syrian refugees coming to Quebec over the next three months — 2,650 by Dec. 31 and another 3,650 by the end of February.
Asked about the challenge of finding housing for them in Montreal, Weil said that’s still being worked out. She said Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre has set up a committee that is looking into housing.
Twelve other Quebec cities are also welcoming refugees, including Sherbrooke, Quebec City, Drummondville and Granby.
Weil said Quebec has already processed the files of 2,900 new refugees, but “we can’t say yet who will be on the first planes.” She said the province will reveal more logistical details within a few days.
McCallum dismissed suggestions that few refugees are keen on Canada. Only five per cent of those surveyed by the United Nations by text message in refugee camps said they would relocate in Canada.
“I just came back from there and I spoke to many people in Jordan and there’s a huge enthusiasm, a hunger to come to Canada,” McCallum said. He said there were technical glitches in the UN study.
“Look at all of them that have gone to Germany — almost a million — and they’ve endured desperate conditions and many have died to get to Europe. So the idea that they don’t want to come to Canada is crazy.”
Canada “has several million to choose from. There’s no doubt that we can find 25,000 who would be desperately keen to come here.”
On Thursday, the National Council for Refugees said many Canadians have offered to volunteer and otherwise help organizations serving the newcomers.
“It is important for Canadians to expect a great diversity among the refugees to be resettled,” the council said in a joint statement with nine other refugee-resettlement organizations. “Some will be Muslim, others Christian, others entirely secular. We anticipate that some will be LGBT.
“They may be highly educated or have minimal education. Some are likely to be highly traumatized, while others may be able to integrate quickly into the job market. We should look forward to the many ways in which they will contribute to our communities, showing courage and resilience.”
Ottawa has said it will spend $678 million on the operation. Quebec is budgeting $29 million for the 2015 phase of its resettlement plan.
During the federal election campaign, the Liberals promised to resettle 25,000 refugees by the end of 2015. After the election, the Liberal government said that initial pledge was unrealistic.
The federal government has created a website detailing Canada’s Syrian refugee effort, while Quebec has launched a site about how Quebecers can help.