Liberals push back deadline on Syrian refugees

CFB Trenton is planning to take in 1,000 refugees, and CFB Valcartier in Quebec is expected to house up to 500. The first phase will be identifying who should be resettled; that will be followed by the second phase of selecting and processing among those identified, then transportation to Canada (third phase). welcoming to Canada (fourth phase) and then the final phase which is settlement in Canada.

“Everyone agrees that Canada must do more and must welcome 25,000 refugees”, newly elected Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said late Monday, after getting unanimous support from the country’s 10 provincial premiers, which are similar to USA governors. That was on top of the ongoing resettlement of Syrians refugees that began in 2013.

One of the attackers who blew himself up outside a Paris soccer stadium on November 13 was apparently carrying the passport of a Syrian immigrant, which the French government later said was a fake.

Goodspeed says the scale and the speed of the operation to welcome the refugees caught the government off guard, forcing it to push back its January 1st deadline. The group deals primarily with government-sponsored refugees but does provided English lessons and other services to privately funded people.

Critics – backed by 54 percent of Canadians, according to recent polls – have urged Trudeau to slow down the process to avoid mistakes in security screenings of refugees.

The refugees will most likely come from camps in Jordan, Turkey and Lebanon.

While preparations are underway to accept Syrian refugees at CFB Borden and Meaford, it’s unknown how many people each base could receive.

Canadian military personnel will also help government staff collect biometric data from the refugees as part of the security process. The majority of these will be finalized in the coming weeks.

Once screening is done, refugees will be flown to Toronto and Montreal, largely on chartered aircraft, although the military is also on call to provide airlifts every 48 hours if necessary.

Tuesday’s announcement is sure to raise alarm in the US, where many Republican governors have said they don’t want any Syrian refugees.

A Syrian Kurdish woman crosses the border between Syria and Turkey at the southeastern town of Suruc in Sanliurfa province on September 23, 2014.

“Three months ago, we were talking about how we should support Syrian refugees following a picture of a drowned child on the Mediterranean”, he said.

They will also be given access to resettlement programs, including language training and classes to help them adjust to their new life in Canada.

“Most certainly the biggest issue – and it has been my issue all along – is in terms of the time frame”, the new Conservative MP told Peace Arch News on Friday, noting that she has had first-hand experience with practical issues of refugee resettlement during her 10 years as mayor of Surrey.

“The United Kingdom should accept a number of these particularly vulnerable refugees”.

Canada’s stance reflects the change in government after last month’s election.

“Canada has fostered a long and proud tradition of humanitarian leadership on the global stage”. “I made a clear commitment to Canadians to withdraw the six fighter jets and we will be doing that”.