The current Liberal government has waived travel expenses for refugees arriving from Syria since Nov 5, 2015 when they came into power. However, other Syrian refugees arriving before this date, and refugees from other countries, must cover their own travel costs to come to the country.
For some this means arriving in a country with nothing only to be saddled with thousands of dollars of debt. This is also creating a two-tier refugee system where some refugees have an easier economic time than others and may create challenges within those communities.
Canada must waive travel costs for all refugees, regardless of their country of origin or when they arrived in the country. It is cruel to place such financial burden on families and individuals when they are just in the process of re-establishing themselves after traumatic upheaval and diaspora.
By signing today you are helping to support new Canadian families by creating the conditions of success instead of burdening them with economic challenges immediately.
We ask that travel costs be waived for all refugees. We understand that the Canadian government has waived travel expenses for Syrian refugees arriving after November 5, 2015 but Syrian refugees arriving prior to this date, as well as refugees from other countries, are burdened with debt incurred by coming to this country for asylum.
We understand that refugees face unique challenges when arriving in the country and that many are coming completely empty-handed. We know that they are doing their best to establish themselves financially in the country and the added burden of travel expense debt does nothing to help them create a sustainable life in Canada.
We ask that this is done immediately and retroactively.
