Whereas the Canadian volunteer organization Lifeline Syria, citing statistics from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees UNHCR, reports that as Syria enters its fifth year of civil war: - nearly 12 million people fully half the countrys population are homeless, including 4 million refugees who have fled to neighbouring countries, and 7 million internally displaced people inside Syria; - amongst the 12 million homeless people are 4.2 million Syrian children who have fled their homes; - 90,000 Syrian refugees are registered by UNHCR every month; - more than 250,000 Syrian people have died; and - as of March 2015 nearly 254,000 Syrians had requested asylum in Europe; And whereas the federal government over the past three years has contributed 403.5 million in humanitarian aid to the Syrian crisis, and has committed to resettle a total of 11,300 Syrian refugees in Canada from 2015 through 2017: Therefore be it resolved that, in light of the discrepancy between the large number of refugees with documented resettlement needs and the relatively small number of people the federal government has offered to assist, the federal government review and implement significant increases and expedited processing times for its humanitarian aid and resettlement commitments; And be it further resolved that the federal government report out regularly to the Canadian public on the federal governments progress toward achieving the above objectives; And be it further resolved that the federal government implement additional assistance, in partnership with the United Nations or other humanitarian organizations, to actively address the urgent needs of Syrians inside Syria, including providing assistance to those wishing to leave Syria; And be it further resolved that the federal government reach out to local governments, non-profit organizations and community groups across Canada that wish to assist in relocation efforts, providing information, advice and connections to ensure that the assistance Canadians extend to refugees is timely, appropriate and effective.
