Zaatari refugee camp resonates with Canada
This past Sunday, joined by a delegation of Canadians on a state visit to Jordan, my wife Sharon and I visited the massive Zaatari refugee camp just 13 kilometres from the Syrian border.
The camp is home to 80,000 Syrian refugees, part of a larger group of 650,000 registered refugees in Jordan who are enduring the crushing burden of war but who continue to hope and to have the will to rebuild their lives and make a better future for their children.
My overriding impression of the camp is of the vast human potential of the refugees who have sought shelter there. Zaatari itself is proof of this. It is a dense, dynamic hub of tents, container homes, shops, schools, hospitals, playgrounds and distribution centres. There are restaurants, cafés, a billiards hall, a wedding dress shop and a furniture shop, all owned and operated by refugees.
Thanks to the enlightened support of NGOs and government agencies and the efforts of refugees themselves, Zaatari has developed an impressive economy and way of life that allows refugees to shape the settlement to suit their needs. Though opportunities are of course limited and the desire to resume normal lives very strong, the refugees are not content to sit idly. On the contrary, the settlement vividly demonstrates the creativity, entrepreneurial spirit and desire for dignity of those who have lost everything and live there.
Also, one cannot visit Zaatari without catching glimpses of Syrians’ humanity and great sense of humour. Case in point: the settlement’s main street is jokingly nicknamed the “Champs-Élysées.”
The City of Light it isn’t, but the refugees’ ability to make the best of a very bad situation is inspiring and it reaffirms our view that welcoming Syrian refugees to Canada is not just the right thing to do, but the bright thing. There’s no doubt, the challenge of refugee resettlement is also an opportunity for Canada. These people have a lot to offer.
So where do we stand, almost one year after Canada’s Syrian refugee initiative began? To date, more than 32,000 refugees (many of whom passed through Zaatari on their way here) have arrived in almost 350 communities across Canada. Of that number, more than 12,000 refugees were privately sponsored, an impressive number that includes a few sponsored by our daughters, Sharon and I are proud to say.
There are of course growing pains. The challenge of resettling and integrating thousands of people from a faraway, warravaged country is considerable. But in light of the devastation that continues to be wrought upon the Syrian people, the large presence of Syrian refugees across Jordan and the millions elsewhere, we are doing well. And importantly, Canadians are helping to write a narrative that positions refugees as beneficial to societies rather than a burden.
It’s a story we should tell the world. With the notable exception of indigenous peoples, Canada is a nation of immigrants and refugees. Millions of Canadians came from abroad, fleeing war, deprivation or persecution in their homelands, eager to make better lives for themselves and their families.
Given the chance, that’s precisely what newcomers to Canada have done. In fact, my two immediate predecessors as governor general, Michaëlle Jean and Adrienne Clarkson, were refugees from Haiti in 1968 and Hong Kong during the Second World War, respectively. Both have made extraordinary contributions to Canada and the world.
These are just two examples, but thanks to Canada’s historic openness to refugees — which is, let’s remember, punctuated by darker moments when we closed our doors — there are countless such heartening stories in our country. We should look forward to a future when those who had no choice but to seek shelter in the Zaatari refugee camp put their imaginations and their talents to use as Canadians, because theirs is also the story of Canada.
The settlement vividly demonstrates the creativity, entrepreneurial spirit and desire for dignity of those who have lost everything and live there