The Media Roundup provides links to recent and archived articles, in both English and French, on immigration and diversity appearing in the national and local news. Some international content is also included. Articles are updated weekly.
Hamilton Spectator – Push by Germany to Distribute Migrants is Rejected by Four European Nations
At least four countries Friday firmly rejected a European Union plan to impose refugee quotas to ease a worsening migrant crisis that Germany’s foreign minister said was “probably the biggest challenge” in the history of the 28-nation bloc. Hungary, which along with the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Poland said it would not support the proposal, threatened instead to crack down on the thousands of people streaming across its borders daily as they flee war and persecution. The stance by those Central European countries reflected a hardening front against distributing at least some of the refugees among them and was a stinging rebuff to German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who travelled to Prague to try to persuade them to reconsider.
Globe and Mail – Religious Groups Make Leap of Faith to Support Syrian Refugees
A grassroots response to the Syrian refugee crisis is growing in communities across Canada, combining the refugee sponsorship know-how of churches with the contacts and cultural knowledge within Arab and Muslim communities. In Alberta, the odd coupling involves Mennonites and Muslims. In Manitoba, a broad coalition includes Christian churches and Arab and Islamic groups. And in Ontario, partnerships are popping up everywhere, from big cities to a small village church. A staggering four million refugees fleeing the civil war in Syria are scattered in camps and cities around the Middle East. Western governments are under pressure to do more to bring them to safety, including calls for Canada to admit more people through its government-assisted program. Instead of waiting, faith groups are leading the way – often working together for the first time to sponsor refugees through the private system. One of the more robust responses is taking place in Edmonton. The Mennonite and Muslim communities started working together in 2014, and since March of this year the partnership has reconnected 32 Syrian refugees living in Jordan, Turkey and Egypt with relatives in Edmonton. By year’s end, that number will exceed 150.
Globe and Mail – Groups Call for a Streamlined Refugee Process in Canada
A committee of prominent Canadians that includes Louise Arbour and Ed Broadbent is calling for an urgent, de-politicized response to the Syrian refugee crisis that would see Canada push for a ceasefire in Syria, cut its immigration red tape and send visa officers into the field to speed refugee processing. The group, chaired by former immigration minister Ron Atkey, aims to provide the non-partisan advice that could enable Canada to more quickly welcome large numbers of Syrians displaced by civil war. Its stated aim is to admit “as many Syrians as possible as quickly as possible.” It also calls for Canada to step up its diplomatic efforts to broker a ceasefire by convening an international peace conference that would work toward an enduring solution in the region. […]Mr. Atkey, who oversaw immigration at the time of the Vietnamese crisis of 1979 when Canada welcomed 60,000 refugees, said Canada should take immediate action to put visa officers into the field to evaluate and process refugee applications.
Star Phoenix – Immigration Department Returned $350 Million
Canada’s immigration department returned more than $350 million to the federal treasury in unspent funds over a three-year period, a sum that included millions for processing refugee applications and helping asylum-seekers settle into Canada. The figure, drawn from official government financial reports, has prompted renewed criticism of the Conservatives, who have been under fire on the campaign trail for their handling of the Syrian refugee crisis. […] Some parts of the department were hit harder than others. More than 25 per cent of the $35 million set aside to process refugee applications, for example, went unspent in 2013-14. That was a marked increase in unspent money from the previous year, when 10 per cent lapsed. All the money for refugee protection was spent in 2011-12.
The Province – Canada Only Country to Charge Refugees Interest on Travel Loans
Canada is the only country in the world to charge interest to refugees on travel loans, saddling struggling newcomers with debt as they try to rebuild their lives, advocates say. The federal government requires privately sponsored and government-assisted refugees to pay for their own travel costs and overseas medical exams and will loan families up to $10,000. “Refugees are desperate and eager to repay the loan, as a small gesture of tremendous gratitude and appreciation to the government,” said Chris Friesen of the Immigrant Services Society of British Columbia. “But at what cost?” Friesen said families are using more of their food money to pay down the debt. He said some countries, including the United States and Australia, require refugees to pay back loans for travel costs but don’t charge interest. About 91 per cent of refugees pay back the loans
La Presse – Les dons des Canadiens à l’UNICEF explosent
Émus par la photographie du cadavre d’un petit Syrien sur une plage de Turquie, les Canadiens ont donné trois fois plus d’argent en dix jours à l’UNICEF que pendant les huit premiers mois de l’année. Et deux donateurs ont promis d’égaler les prochaines contributions des Canadiens, jusqu’à concurrence de 25 000 $ chacun. Le Fonds des Nations unies pour l’enfance (UNICEF) a indiqué vendredi que depuis le début de septembre, les Canadiens ont versé 175 000 $ au Fonds d’intervention d’urgence en Syrie, alors que de janvier à août, ces dons totalisaient 60 000 $. Selon le président d’UNICEF Canada, cette hausse soudaine est effectivement attribuable à la publication, le 2 septembre, de la photo du petit Alan Kurdi, trois ans, gisant face contre terre sur une plage turque, après une tentative infructueuse de sa famille pour gagner la Grèce en bateau.
