UNHCR raises hope on resettlement of 25,000 Syrian refugees in Canada

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CANADA: THE United Nations High Commissioner for Refugee (UNHCR) has hinted on plan to help Syrian refugees settle down in Canada and subsequently become citizens.

The hint came on the heels of plans by the Liberal government of the newly elected Prime Minister Justin Trudeau which promised to bring in 25,000 Syrian refugees by this December.

Under the initiative, the refugees would be issued, at the initial stage, temporary residence permit, and would obtain permanent residence thereafter.

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres, who made this known in a release on the UNHRC

website, also said that after four years of living in Canada the refugees would be eligible to apply for citizenship.

Guterres: “UNHCR will work with Canadian immigration authorities to allow for the quick identification of vulnerable Syrians in the Middle East, particularly from Lebanon and Jordan, and facilitate their move to Canada.

“Syrian refugees moving to Canada under the scheme will initially receive a temporary residence permit, to be replaced by permanent residence status after processing in Canada, and be eligible to apply for citizenship in four years.”

He said: “UNHCR today welcomed the announcement by the Government of Canada to take in a further 25,000 Syrian refugees through humanitarian admission programmes by the end of 2015.

“This is a huge gesture of solidarity with the Syrian people and the countries neighbouring Syria which together are hosting more than four million refugees and bearing the brunt of this crisis.”

The commissioner appealed to other countries to help the Syrians in line with the decision of the Canadian government to help resettle the refugees.

His words: “I urge other countries to follow Canada’s lead, galvanise their resources, and dramatically increase the number of Syrians who are able to rebuild their lives in safe countries without having to take perilous journeys.”

“Too many vulnerable refugees are languishing in countries neighbouring Syria, caught in a downward spiral of poverty and risk as they struggle to meet their basic needs,” Guterres said, adding: “We need many more ambitious programmes like this to offer Syrians a chance to start their lives anew.”

It would be recalled that Canada had earlier pledged to take in 10,000 Syrian refugees before September, 2016 after the UNHCR pledging conference for resettlement and other forms of humanitarian admission in December 2014.

“The total number of places for Syrians under these schemes in some 30 countries now stands at 155,408,” the UNHCR said, adding: “UNHCR estimates 10 per cent of the 4.1 million registered refugees in countries neighbouring Syria are vulnerable and are in need of resettlement or humanitarian admission to a third country.”