Who is a Refugee A Refugee is a

Who is a Refugee?

A Refugee is a person who § Is outside his or her own country § Has a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of: § race, § religion, § nationality, § political opinion or § membership in a particular social group. § cannot return home or is afraid to do so.

Refugee, Migrant, Displaced Person, Asylum Seeker? § Refugee: § Forced to flee a country due to persecution § Internally displaced: § Forced to flee but does not cross a border to leave their country § Asylum seeker: § A refugee who is seeking protection, but no country has ‘determined’ whether or not the person meets the definition of a refugee § Migrant : § A person who moves, usually voluntarily, to live or work, either temporarily or permanently. May or may not cross a border.

How Do Refugees Come to Canada? 1. Resettlement: § refugees usually are referred to Canada by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees § They become landed immigrants upon arrival in Canada § They may be assisted by the government or private sponsors 2. Spontaneous Arrivals (Refugee Claimants) § People travel to Canada and make a refugee claim upon arrival in Canada. § They go through a refugee determination process to determine if they are convention refugees. § If successful they are allowed to apply to become permanent residents § If not successful they are required to leave Canada.

Is Canada Refugee Friendly? (yes and no) yes § sponsorships/resettlement: Canada normally resettles 10% of all refugees identified by UNHCR. § In 2012 The three major countries of resettlement were: the United States (53, 053 persons departed), Australia (5, 079), and Canada (4, 755). § Private Sponsors resettled an additional 6 -7, 000 individuals § Settlement – integration programs § Inland refugee determination process

Canada’s Resettlement of Refugees

Is Canada refugee friendly? (no) § § § We are improving Visa restrictions Safe 3 rd country with USA Shorter time frames to make a refugee claim List of so called ‘safe’ countries of origin (shorter time frames for refugee hearings) § Detention with limited review for refugees who are ‘irregular arrivals’ (arrive in a group with the aid of smugglers) § Slow overseas processing of files for family reunification

Refugees in the World Today 2014: Almost 60 million forcibly displaced people around the world • 19. 5 million refugees • 40 million internally displaced • One in every 122 people world wide

Where are Syrians?

What is the rest of the world Doing? § § § More than One million refugees entered Europe in 2015. More than half from Syria and Iraq Many European countries now are working to limit numbers. New border controls between EU members and border walls and fences at front line states EU members approved a € 3 -billion fund in 2016 for Turkey to improve living conditions for refugees in exchange for promise people do not migrate to Europe. Gulf Arab states' : Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates officially have taken NO Syrian refugees. (they have provided $$ to neighbouring countries to support refugees Other high income countries including Russia, Japan, Singapore and South Korea have also offered zero resettlement places

What is Canada Doing? § UNHCR has identified 450, 000 vulnerable Syrian refugees in need of resettlement § Between January 2014 and August 2015, Canada resettled about 2, 400 Syrian refugees. § The newly elected government pledged to admit: § 10, 000 Syrians by the end of December 2015 (2, 000 Government and 8, 000 Private) § 15, 000 more by the end of February 2016 (13, 000 Government and 2, 000 Private) § 10, 000 more Government by end of December 2016 § Aid to the region: $950 million

How Does Canada compare to other resettlement countries?

Previous Refugee Responses of Canada

What is Amnesty International Doing? European Union

What is Amnesty International Doing? Research

What Is Amnesty International Doing? In Canada We are calling for: § Government leaders to use language which respects refugees § Maintain a strong resettlement program for refugees from ALL countries § Fair policies for refugees who make claims for asylum from inside Canada § Speedy reunification of refugee families § Keep the promise to restore health care for refugees

What Can you do? § Support Amnesty International’s call on Canada to keep it’s door open to refugees § Educate yourself! Learn about refugee rights in Canada § Challenge negative stereotypes about refugees § Share your concerns about refugees with your Member of Parliament § Welcome refugees in your community