Syrian refugeesCanada limits Syrian refugee program to women, children, and families

Published 24 November 2015

Canada’s federal government announced its Syrian refugee plan, a central feature of which is limiting those accepted into Canada to women, children, and families only. Sources told CBC News that to address security concerns, unaccompanied men seeking asylum will not be part of the program.

Canada’s federal government announced its Syrian refugee plan, a central feature of which is limiting those accepted into Canada to women, children, and families only.

Sources told CBC News that to address security concerns, unaccompanied men seeking asylum will not be part of the program.

The details of the plan will be announced later today (Tuesday), but Canadian officials have already been implementing the news policy on the ground.

RT reports that in the last six weeks, Canadian officials have screened about 100 asylum applicants a day in Lebanon as part of the government’s plan of accepting 25,000 Syrian refugees in Canada by the end of the year.

The Canadian government has been tight-lipped about its security screening procedures, and has not clarified whether these procedures are being employed only in refugee camps overseas, or whether these procedures are being used in Canada as well.

Canada’s Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale said last week that the security screening process comes on top the screening procedures already in place by the United Nations.

Canada said that most of the refugees arriving in Canada would initially be housed in military bases, and that other kinds of housing will also be used, including hotels and abandoned hospitals.

Refugees will not be housed in tents in Canada.

Canada’s goal is to limit the period of time refugees stay in these temporary sites to one month, and then have the refugees dispersed throughout Canada.

Economists estimate that the total cost to Canada of the refugee program would be around $1.2 billion over the next six years.