44th Parl. 1st Sess.
June 8, 2022 02:00PM
- Jun/8/22 2:57:53 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Russia's genocidal war on Ukraine has caused the largest refugee crisis in Europe since World War II, with 14 million Ukrainians having fled their homes and about six million having fled to other countries. In my community in Etobicoke Centre and across this country, Canadians have opened their arms to Ukrainian refugees, opening up their homes, collecting donations, offering financial support and more.
Could the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship please share with Canadians what the Government of Canada is doing to support Ukrainians fleeing Russia's genocidal war on Ukraine?
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Madam Speaker, I believe the member opposite asked my hon. colleague, the Minister of Immigration, a question on this and he said that this was something they were looking at internally in the department. I do not have the specifics on that.
What I will say is that I am proud of the government's record on immigration. We have been tabling important numbers in terms of levels. We have brought in 15,000 Afghans. The minister has made it very clear that we are going to continue to drive forward toward our goal of 40,000. We have brought in 80,000 Ukrainians and we have, I think, close to 200,000 applications that we are going to continue to focus on.
I have Syrian immigrants in my riding who are so thankful and proud to be in Canada.
It has been this government that has taken this approach. The member opposite ran on a platform that did not even support government-assisted refugees. That program was going to be cut.
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- Jun/8/22 11:56:48 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, we are here this evening because the government has made a commitment to resettle 40,000 Afghan refugees, a commitment that we are failing to deliver on. How many have we actually welcomed? It is only 15,000.
While the minister pats himself on the back for welcoming 37.5% of our commitment, people are suffering. While the minister pats himself on the back for a failing grade, people are dying.
How many people are hiding in abandoned buildings trying to evade the Taliban's wrath, who would kill not only them but everyone they hold dear, like women and children? It does not matter who, because the Taliban are a group of people who have put individuals into cages and set them on fire.
The government is keeping 25,000 terrified people waiting. Canada made a commitment. The government is not delivering, and people are dying because of it.
Even of the 15,000 who have made it, how many were because of the government and how many were because of the heroic efforts of civil society organizations like the Veterans Transition Network? It stepped up in the absence of government leadership to help resettle at least 2,061 refugees. Sadly, as even the CBC reported, even it has had to stop its efforts because its staff were so exhausted by “logistical nightmares” and “bureaucratic red tape”.
Since November of last year, I have had the extreme privilege of working with the Cassels law firm in Toronto in the hopes of savings the lives of people who have assisted Canada in Afghanistan. They were our nation's lawyers in Kabul, but right now it seems their lives do not matter very much. Enough with the excuses; bring them to Canada now.
A short time ago, my hon. colleague, the member for Calgary Forest Lawn, raised in this House the tragic death of Nazifa, who was a 10-year-old girl murdered by the Taliban because her father worked with our military in Kandahar. How many more children will die before the government honours our nation's word?
Just two weeks ago, I was in Warsaw and met with a number of Afghan refugees who were rescued by Poland. Poland has also welcomed 3.6 million Ukrainian refugees. The Afghan refugees need our help. They want to resettle in Canada.
I met with an Afghan couple, he a journalist and she a teacher. He showed me the messages that he had received from the Taliban telling him they would kill him and his wife and any family members they could find.
I also spoke with a former justice of the Supreme Court of Afghanistan. She told me about how she cannot go back because when the Taliban took over, they opened the doors of the prisons and released all the criminals, criminals she had convicted of heinous crimes.
What happened to the government's feminist foreign policy? Canada made a commitment. People's lives are at risk, and the government must honour our nation's word.
What is the plan for the 25,000 people who are waiting for the government to honour its word? Give us a timeline. Please.
We are at 15,000 now. When will we hit 20,000 or 25,000? When will we hit 40,000 refugees?
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- Jun/9/22 12:00:56 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, following the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan last summer, the government initially committed to resettling 20,000 vulnerable Afghan refugees. We have now increased that commitment and will bring at least 40,000 Afghans to Canada.
On July 23, 2021, the Government of Canada announced special immigration measures for individuals with a significant and/or enduring relationship with the Government of Canada, along with their accompanying family members. On August 13, we announced a special humanitarian program focused on resettling Afghan nationals who are outside of Afghanistan and who do not have a durable solution in a third country. This program focuses on women leaders, human rights defenders, LGBTQI individuals, and journalists and people who assisted Canadian journalists. We have also created a pathway to permanent residence for extended family members of former Afghan interpreters who previously immigrated to Canada under the 2009 and 2012 public policies.
IRCC has mobilized its global network, and all available resources are being devoted to this effort. IRCC is also prioritizing the processing of privately sponsored Afghan refugees. The department is harnessing the generosity of Canadians, including through sponsorship agreement holders and through individual and corporate donations for private sponsorship.
Yesterday, as the member said, we marked an important milestone by welcoming our 15,000th Afghan refugee to Canada. Hundreds more are arriving each week, including 300 privately sponsored refugees today.
I think it is important to put Canada's commitment to Afghans into a global context. Per capita, our goal of bringing at least 40,000 Afghan nationals to Canada places us among the top countries in the world when it comes to resettlement, second only to the United States on numbers alone. In terms of raw numbers, our commitment of 40,000 is larger than that of the United Kingdom and Australia, and is the same as the one being pursued by the European Union, which has ten times the population of Canada.
We remain firm in our commitment to resettle at least 40,000 Afghan nationals as quickly and as safely as possible, and we will not stop until the work is done.
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- Jun/9/22 12:03:14 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, as the son of refugees, I applaud the government's commitment to 40,000, but my question for my hon. colleague is, when? He has spoken about the importance of supporting members of the LGBTQ community and activists. There is Rainbow Railroad. When are we going to be able to support them to come over?
I talked about Canada's law firm in Kabul and Mr. Shajjan. His 28 lawyers are still stuck in Afghanistan. When will they be brought over?
I have talked about a number of journalists and a justice, but there is also an Afghan interpreter who is now seven months pregnant. She is wife to a veteran of our nation and is in a third party country right now, Pakistan. She has still not been able to make her way here.
When can they come to their new home?
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- Jun/9/22 12:04:19 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, we are one of the only countries in the world to have implemented a humanitarian stream to welcome even more Afghan refugees based on their particular vulnerabilities. Individuals are referred by designated partners that are trained and experienced in assessing vulnerability and operating in situations of mass displacements and humanitarian hardship. Our referral partners include the United Nations Refugee Agency, Front Line Defenders, ProtectDefenders.eu and Canadian private sponsors.
In light of the current situation in Afghanistan, we will waive the requirement for a refugee status determination for private sponsorship applications. Also, our government is going to work with partners to utilize the economic mobility pathways pilot, an innovative program designed to help skilled refugees resettle in Canada, to welcome even more Afghan refugees.
We have not wavered in our world-leading commitment to resettle at least 40,000 Afghan refugees in Canada. As I said, earlier today Canada welcomed another 300 Afghan refugees.
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