Justin Trudeau has yet to clarify how many Afghans will receive government assistance and how many will be supported through private sponsorship
An estimated 3,750 Afghans are on their way to beginning life in Canada through a special immigration program, according to Alexander Cohen, press secretary at Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada . The program was set up this summer to assist interpreters who worked with the Canadian armed forces and Afghan employees of the Canadian embassy. Individuals who qualify, and their families, have been able to apply directly for it.
Another 9,400 have been approved under these special immigration measures but have yet to enter Canada. Some are still in Afghanistan, others have fled elsewhere. The government continues to process applications, and the total number who qualify may rise. Community organizations who work with refugees are overwhelmed with messages from Afghans asking, “What can I do to get out?” said Kelly Ernst of the Centre for Newcomers in Calgary. People still inside and outside Afghanistan have been frantically trying to secure one of the 40,000 spots.
The situation within Afghanistan and at its borders is volatile. Wali, who worked as an interpreter for the Canadian armed forces and is now in Calgary with his family, stressed that it’s complicated and dangerous now for anyone to flee. Even if these bureaucratic hiccups are resolved, determining who, among millions of Afghan refugees should be prioritized for resettlement, is vexed. The government has identified target groups, among them: women leaders, human rights defenders, journalists, individuals who identify as LGBTI, and people with ties to Canada.
Reuniting families is one priority. Azatullah and Mastora came to Canada with 11 other relatives in August. But that isn’t their whole family. There’s Mastora’s husband, who lost his job with an Afghan airline and is now stranded in Jordan, and Azatullah’s six other siblings and their spouses and children too. It’s painful to be separated. “We are happy now, but our minds are over there,” Azatullah said.
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