Regina Leader-Post

Syrians take backstage in PM’s drama series

- CHRIS NELSON Chris Nelson is a Calgary writer

The problem with the various drama series Ottawa insists on launching upon captive Canadians, is it keeps cancelling them just as we finally figure out the plot and characters involved.

This would be annoying if it was simply entertainm­ent designed to distract from questions about such boring topics as our lack of economic strategy and heedless spending, or whether we have actual revised national objectives in the current NAFTA discussion­s.

But oh no, we need some skin in this ongoing game to guarantee ratings, though never our own, of course. However, the threatened, scared and destitute of other countries will do nicely.

Trudeau’s government loves a high-profile humanitari­an cause to cling to, which is why it is drawn to dramas involving desperate people whose plight affords some temporary moral grandstand­ing before they’re later jettisoned for a more fashionabl­e collection of victims.

Once, it was the poor folk of Syria — a country that’s become the equivalent of an all-you-can-eat buffet for the world’s military machines. Famously, our prime minister opened the doors for many refugees of that conflict and, in a mix of government­al and private action, about 45,000 people were resettled in Canada.

But that was then, this is now. Private refugee groups, many of them faith-based organizati­ons with resettleme­nt processes in place, say things have changed. Delays are now the norm and the welcome tap is tight.

If this was policy then, fair enough. If the government decided we’ve enough on our plate resettling those already here, then that’s both valid and sensible.

But don’t kid yourself. Syrians were yesterday’s news. Suddenly, we were handed an even better grandstand­ing platform when Donald Trump started threatenin­g to shut his country’s borders and kick “illegals” out in his typically cruel and ham-fisted manner.

Trudeau couldn’t resist responding, hence the hashtag “Welcome to Canada” and his tweet: “to those fleeing persecutio­n, terror & war, Canadians will welcome you, regardless of your faith. Diversity is our strength.”

The world went gaga over comparison with Terrible Trump. Not surprising­ly, those poor people in the U.S. surviving on temporary visas or living off the grid suddenly imagined a better life north of the border.

They started flooding in. First, it was mainly Haitians, while today, Nigerians make up the bulk of this ever-increasing flow. Border officials are now poised for an influx of El Salvadoran­s if the U.S. follows through and clamps down on those folk.

The statistics are startling. Quebec, where most of these people enter, says it cannot cope.

Numbers have spiked to 6,074 this year alone, compared to about 2,000 during the same period in 2017.

Meanwhile, federal officials have fanned out across major U.S. cities trying to spread the word that what Trudeau tweeted didn’t actually mean everyone’s welcome.

Well, that horse has bolted. When a prime minister sends out a message with the hashtag Welcome to Canada aimed at worried people next door, what the heck did he expect?

But, just like the Syrians, these current scared, poor and desperate people will soon take backstage and many will be returned somewhere else after a few years of various hearings at huge taxpayer expense.

Because, fortunatel­y for Ottawa, there’s a fresh humanitari­an crisis in which to dabble like a spoiled child in a candy store, while snagging some fawning worldwide headlines.

Good old Bob Rae is just back from Bangladesh, where as special envoy, he examined the dreadful plight of the ethnic Rohingya people, 700,000 of whom have been forced out of their homes in neighbouri­ng Myanmar. And what does he suggest?

First, Rae says we should spend more money on this crisis. That’s hardly a shocker, given Rae’s resume of less-than-prudent pursestrin­g watching. No, the kicker is Canada should consider granting refugee and resettleme­nt status to ethnic Rohingya.

Hey, why not? Once we’ve halted the Syrians, kicked out the Haitians and told the El Salvadoran­s not to bother, we’ll have some room for the Rohingya. At least until we sense some better headlines elsewhere.

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