Canada boosts funds to help United Nations address Syria refugee crisis

Goodspeed says that makes sense if they’re trying to get large numbers of refugees in, but it could mean single unaccompanied men may have to wait.

During past refugee crises Canadians have stepped up to the plate to smooth the way. Germany saw 758,000 refugees and other migrants arrive between January and October.

“It would have been very problematic if they had stuck to the December 31 deadline at all costs”, said James Milner, a professor at Carleton University and former consultant with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees.

“We know that Syrian refugees are cutting on meals, taking on debt to meet their basic daily needs and risking their lives to leave Syria”, said Bibeau.

Today’s announcement brings Canada’s assistance funding in response to the Syria crisis to a total of $969 million, Bibeau said.

United Nations staff in Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey are working tirelessly to help select the 15,000 Syrians who will be brought to Canada by the end of February directly by the government.

International Development Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau said the government will move quickly to disburse the funds that it has already announced, but was noncommittal about whether more might be pledged in the future.

It will be impossible to screen them all securely and safely before they arrive on Canadian soil.

The decision to abandon original year-end deadline to resettle the entire 25,000 was due to nothing more than a need to institute the best possible program, Immigration Minister John McCallum said.

“Over the last five years they have experienced conflict, they’ve been displaced from their homes, they have experienced loss as possibly family members and friends have been killed”, Philpott said in an interview with CBC News. “With over four million Syrian refugees in the region, I hope more countries will follow Canada’s example and not only help us address the enormous needs in the neighbouring states but provide more opportunities for refugees to find safety elsewhere”. Families and vulnerable individuals, including those from the LGBT community are priorities, while single men wil be excluded from the Canadian government resettlement program.

Biden’s trip Wednesday comes amid a debate in the United States about whether to admit Syrian refugees following the Islamic State group’s attack in Paris.

In his Thanksgiving message on Thursday, President Barack Obama – who has said he will veto the House bill if it reaches his desk – called for Americans to treat refugees as latter-day Pilgrims, in a reference to the first Americans who fled religious persecution to establish themselves in the new world.