Canada closes its doors to Afghan refugees

According to IRNA report from CBC News on Saturday, the Canadian government is considering the last request out of 18,000 requests from Afghans who hope to immigrate to this country through this program. Refugee advocates say ending the program would abandon Afghans hoping to come to the country.

This program was arranged almost a year ago, a few weeks before the fall of Kabul to the Taliban in August 2021 (August 1400).

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada’s online referral portal for the program is still active, but a spokesperson for Immigration Minister Sean Fraser confirmed in a media release that all openings for the program have been filled.

This institution receives requests from more than 15,000 Afghans and their family members at different stages.

The Toronto Star first reported that the program appeared to be closing in mid-June, prompting a coalition of aid organizations to issue a joint statement condemning the move.

Lorraine Oates, executive director of an Afghan immigrant women’s advocacy group that supports the joint statement, said: “There is not a lot of clarity from the government about exactly what the criteria for admission are.”

Oates said 17 people from his organization have asked the Canadian government to find out if they are eligible for the program, adding that they all started the process last year but have yet to receive an invitation. They have tried every other way. Tried other administrations, other embassies and all kinds of programs, they are caught and in danger.

Oates wants the government to extend the program for another year and increase the number of admissions opportunities for Afghan immigrants.

He said: Parallel to these measures, we will do our best to get our people out of the country and bring them to safety.

Conservative MP Jasraj Singh Halan, a critic of immigration, called the decision to end the program unconscionable.

He said in a media statement: “Closing these programs for new applicants is a shame in itself, but it ignores that only half of the promised 40,000 Afghans have managed to do it through bureaucratic mismanagement.”

Pai added: “NGOs and veterans’ groups have been shut down without Canadian support to evacuate Afghans who worked alongside Canadian forces and the government.”

New Democratic Party (NDP) immigration critic Jenny Cowan said the government’s claim that other migration routes remain open to Afghans is “delusional.”

“What the government needs to do is to come forward and open up this program to ensure that those who are eligible, those who have served Canada, who are part of the Canadian military and their family members are brought to safety,” he said. be.

Since August last year, about 16,540 Afghans have entered Canada.

Fraser’s office also told CBC in a statement that since the fall of Kabul, it has received hundreds of thousands of messages from people who have expressed interest in coming to Canada, but unfortunately, that number is far more than we can bring to Canada.