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.
CBC – “No Cap” on Number of Syrian Refugees N.L. Can Accept
Changes to immigration rules in Canada mean Newfoundland and Labrador can welcome an unlimited number of Syrian refugees, but the Association for New Canadians (ANC) says it’s not an easy process. […] Less than two dozen Syrian refugees have made it to the province so far, all sponsored by family members already in Canada. The association became the official agent for arranging private sponsorships of refugees less than a year ago. Initially it was given a cap of 16 cases over two years. Program co-ordinator Ken Walsh said that restriction has since been lifted. “There’s no cap on the number of Syrian refugees, the government of Canada has actually allowed us to sponsor as many Syrians as we see fit, as we can,” said Walsh. He said while there are programs and supports in place to assist refugees coming to Canada, the number of Syrians able to immigrate depends a lot on the local community. “There is no public funding for this program so it relies on the financial assistance from groups, individuals in the community that kind of want to partner with the ANC to help sponsor these individuals and families,” he said.
Reuters Canada – Migration Crisis Tears at EU’s Cohesion and Tarnishes its Image
With harrowing images of drowning children, refugees being herded on and off trains and beaten by police, and barbed-wire fences slicing across Europe, the migration crisis is the moral equivalent of the euro zone crisis. In both cases, the principle of solidarity is being sorely tested. By making the EU look ineffective, disunited and heartless, pitting member states against each other and fuelling political populism and anti-Muslim sentiment, the latest crisis is undermining the ideals of European integration. […] “The world is watching us,” German Chancellor Angela Merkel said last week as she tried to persuade European peers to share the burden of taking in people fleeing war and misery in Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya and beyond. […]Merkel’s bold attempt to exercise leadership, in contrast to her deep caution in the euro crisis, has won only cautious support from close allies like France, where domestic opposition to more immigration is strong, and been rejected outright by countries such as Hungary and Britain.
Toronto Star – Hoskins Implores Ottawa to Speed up Refugee Resettlement
Few politicians in Canada know more about the plight of refugees than Ontario Health Minister Eric Hoskins. Hoskins, a physician who on Friday announced an additional $300,000 in provincial funding to help settle those fleeing war in Syria, understands the situation both as a front-line aid worker and a government official. “We are a safe haven for the world’s most vulnerable and dispossessed,” the co-founder of War Child Canada told reporters at Lifeline Syria’s College Street office. “It’s a history with which I am very familiar. I have spent my entire career working with refugees and families displaced by war in communities ravaged by conflict in Africa and the Middle East, including three years in Iraq,” he said. Urging Ottawa to do more to help Syrian refugees come to Canada, Hoskins recalled when he worked as an advisor to then foreign affairs minister Lloyd Axworthy during the 1999 Kosovo crisis. “We made a decision — because it was the right thing to do — to urgently resettle 5,000 Kosovo refugees to Canada and we did this in less than one month. We can do this again,” he said.
Le Franco – Conflit international : Jean Johnson veut accueillir les Syriens francophones
Fraîchement réélu par acclamation comme président de l’Association canadienne-française de l’Alberta (ACFA) provinciale, Jean Johnson, veut faire savoir au gouvernement fédéral qu’il désire jouer un rôle dans la crise des migrants d’origine syrienne en Europe. Les images de milliers de familles syriennes traversant la Hongrie à pied pour trouver refuge en Autriche et en Allemagne ont fait le tour du monde sur les médias sociaux aujourd’hui. Il n’y a plus de doute, la question de la crise des migrants syriens est sur toutes les lèvres. « Avec tout ce qui se passe en Syrie en ce moment, nous avons un rôle à jouer en tant que nation. S’il y a des réfugiés qui parlent le français, ça devient un point d’attraction pour nous et c’est notre responsabilité de faire savoir au gouvernement fédéral que nous voulons les recevoir », lance Jean Johnson.
L’Acadie Nouvelle – Le Nouveau-Brunswick offre 50 000$ aux réfugiés syriens
Après la Nouvelle-Écosse, le gouvernement du Nouveau-Brunswick donnera 50 000 $ aux efforts d’aide en Syrie. L’annonce a lieu le lendemain de la publication de l’image bouleversante d’un jeune garçon syrien, Alan Kurdi, mort noyé sur une plage turque. Après que Stephen Harper ait refusé d’accélérer l’accueil de réfugiés syriens au Canada suivant la publication des photos tragiques du petit Alan Kurdi, des provinces ont décidé de passer à l’acte en envoyant des fonds au groupe menant les efforts d’aide au pays du Moyen-Orient. Vendredi, le premier ministre du Nouveau-Brunswick, Brian Gallant, en a fait l’annonce devant un groupe de journaliste à sa sortie d’une réunion avec des groupes d’aînés.
Toronto Star – By the Numbers: How Many People Apply for Asylum in Europe
The refugee crisis in Europe has reached a fever pitch. More than 393,000 migrants applied for asylum in European Union countries in the first half of 2015, with most of the migrants are coming from Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq, or closer still, from Kosovo. That’s an increase of almost 170,000 over the same period the previous year. Germany has borne the brunt of this wave, receiving over 154,000 applications, while Canada has only received only 7,032.
