Mr. Trudeau initially promised to bring 25,000 Syrian refugees to Canada by year-end.
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All refugees will undergo thorough security screenings before they are brought to Canada, the government said, despite earlier rumors that some of the security and health checks would be done at Canadian military bases once the refugees had been airlifted into the country.
Canada’s contribution, announced Thursday, fulfils a Liberal campaign promise from the federal election, a contribution that includes $10 million for the United Nations refugee agency to help it select eligible Syrians for settlement in Canada over the next few months.
“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.
Canada has so far issued 928 permanent resident visas to Syrian refugees – but there is still no timeline for when they could start arriving.
“We will welcome them with a smile” he said. A poll conducted in the wake of the Paris attacks by Islamic State (Isis), cited by CBC, has shown a majority of Canadians are opposed to the resettlement of refugees.
The funds come as the Canadian government prepares to settle 25,000 Syrian refugees by February, 2016.
Canadian officials said their decision to slow down the immigration process was not influenced by the Paris terror attack. “And we realized that the most important thing is to be able to reassure Canadians that absolutely everything is being done to keep Canadians safe”.
“We’re not just welcoming 25,000 refugees”, he said.
With the Red Cross active on the ground in Syria and in countries like Jordan, their signs will be a lone familiar sight for many Syrians as they arrive in Canada.
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. So, security is obviously something that always has to be top of mind when you’re welcoming people from conflict zones, from war zones.
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The change in plan isn’t a problem, he said, given the organization’s expertise in quick response to humanitarian emergencies.
