Pros And Cons Of Accepting Syrian Refugees

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The father, Abdullah Kurdi of the three-year-old boy whose body was washed up on the beach in Turkey, blames Canada for his son’s unnecessary death due to his unaccepted application for asylum (The Canadian Press 2015).
The new Liberal government has stated that Canada will be bringing in 25,000 Syrian refugees by February of this year (Government of Canada 2016), however, through a survey asking what Canadian’s thought about the government’s plans, a large majority (54%) opposed this, in particular due to the fast tracking of applications in concern for safety and security (Angus Reid Institute 2015). It is evident there is contrasting views between the government and the citizens; perhaps it is due to a tense decade of economic downfall and …show more content…

Firstly, it is important to establish Canada has a long history with humanitarian aid, which has enabled the country to be a setting example for other countries to follow in times of crises. In addition, Canada is part of the 1951 Refugee Convention and the 1967 Protocol with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), which taking care of refugees is one of Canada’s obligations through an international law (UNHCR 2011, 1-2). All in all, the government’s plan is respecting the current international law Canada has agreed to, like any other international law Canada would …show more content…

The entire process undergoes a tedious process: mandatory referrals by the UNHCR, security reviews, health, and identity confirmations (Government of Canada 2015). All in all, countries around the world have been criticized about how their process of refugees easily neglects ones in need through these difficult measures to fill, as application do not automatically assume the hardship these people already face (Bianchini 2010,373). This situation is a double edged sword in the aspect that if these people do not get help in a timely manner, their lives are at stake and may be too late like for Kurdi’s son, which should be an understandable cause for these applications to be fast