Canada falls short on Syrian refugees

Harper’s statements are misleading, and we can do more, Peter Showler writes.

The image of a drowned small boy on a Turkish beach flashes around the world. We learn that the boy, Alan Kurdi, is a refugee from Syria, drowned along with his brother and mother, during an attempt to reach Greece. We also learn that the boy’s aunt in Vancouver had wanted to bring the family to Canada.

Suddenly, refugees are an election issue. Canadian media are filled with information and misinformation. The prime minister addresses the crisis, offering sincere condolences to the family but insisting that the primary solution is to end the Syrian conflict. He also says: “Certainly we are doing everything we can do.” Ending the war is the obvious solution, but the prime minister’s second assertion is incorrect. Canada is doing far less than it can do.

The prime minister said that under his government’s tenure, 2.5 million people have come to Canada. The number is correct, but the message is misleading. He has conflated immigrants with refugees. Canada accepts about a quarter-million newcomers annually, consisting of three distinct classes: economic immigrants, family members of Canadians and people seeking refugee protection. Historically, the refugee class comprised approximately 13 per cent of the annual immigration flow. Under the Conservative government, that number has fallen to less than 10 per cent.

The prime minister said that, per capita, Canada is one of the most generous nations toward refugees, a misleading statement at best. Through the UNHCR, Canada did resettle 12,000 refugees from around the world last year, second only to the United States. However Germany accepted 30,000 Syrians last year and Sweden took 20,000, while Canada promised to take 1,300 and only processed 700 by the end of the year. The truly generous nations, the ones doing the heavy lifting, are the neighbouring nations to the conflicts providing temporary protection. There are 4.5 million Syrian refugees in Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon alone. Tiny Lebanon, a country of four million people, hosts 1.4 million registered Syrian refugees scattered throughout the country.

Since 1979 and the southeast Asian boat lift, Canada has had a unique refugee resettlement program that has allowed groups of Canadians to sponsor refugees in addition to governmentsponsored refugees. In recent years, sponsorship groups have complained of unreasonable bureaucratic hurdles. Many applications are denied for minor errors in the application form. A government report acknowledged that the group sponsorship process takes nearly five years. The process is quicker for Syrian refugees, but it still takes a year and a half to bring a refugee from Lebanon — far too long for destitute and desperate people. The delays and obstructions discourage sponsors rather than encouraging them. Yet it would have been the only way for Alan Kurdi’s aunt to sponsor his family.

There are solutions. In addition to the 1979-80 boat lift, when Canadians welcomed over 60,000 refugees, Canada has used emergency immigration programs and special teams of immigration officers to bring thousands of refugees quickly from Uganda and Kosovo. Refugees are processed efficiently and quickly and are granted temporary status in Canada. Private sponsorship groups can be enlisted to help them establish in Canada, providing financial support and helping families to integrate into their communities. Later, the refugees can apply for permanent residence from within Canada, if they so choose.

We have done it before. Canada has the expertise and capacity to do it again. Bringing 25,000 Syrian refugees to Canada does not end the war, but it saves individual lives and sets an example for other nations to also open their doors.

The government often invokes the historical generosity of the Canadian people but has done little to truly encourage it. In 1986, the Canadian people were awarded the Nansen Refugee Award by the United Nations for their extraordinary generosity in welcoming the boat people. It is the only time the medal was given to an entire people.

Canada and its government once again have an opportunity to lead the world to relieve an excruciating humanitarian crisis.