Policy Options: Religious groups have played an integral role in providing funds for settlement and supporting private refugee sponsorship. Canada’s private refugee sponsorship program is widely celebrated as a unique policy framework that allows citizens to actively participate in the process of refugee protection.
Vancouver Sun: A rising number of asylum seekers coming to Canada from India, Iran, Nigeria, Pakistan, and China are claiming to be victims of religious persecution. Many of the 60,000 migrants who entered into Canada in 2019 are claiming either political or, increasingly, religious persecution, according to an internal report by the Canadian Border Services Agency.
Sikh Channel: Afghan Sikh and Hindu refugee families arrive in Canada after the tireless work and campaigning by Manmeet Singh Bhullar. The new arrivals have been sponsored through private applications that were organized by the Manmeet Singh Bhullar Foundation, with support from the World Sikh Organization of Canada. Sikhs and Hindus have endured increasing religious persecution, and most have been forced to flee to other countries.
CBC News: Canada is accepting a higher proportion of asylum seekers. The data obtained by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation show the home country of asylum seekers, their reason for fleeing, and whether their asylum claim in Canada was granted. Nearly 10,000 out of almost 90,000 claimants made claims for religious reasons for the period January 2013 to September 2017. The top successful claims come from political and religious refugees who fit the United Nations definition of a convention refugee.
CTV News: Profiles of Syrian refugees are presented to Canada by the United Nations, and the government’s decision on who will settle may be based on criteria such as religion. Although information on religious affiliation is not available, critics are concerned that the distribution could be different than the reported percentages of 74% Sunni Muslim, 13% other Muslim groups, 10% Christian, and 3% Druze among the Syrian population. Selection of refugees is ideally based on need, although for private sponsors responsible for 60% of the refugees coming to Canada, it is up to the church or group do decide who to sponsor.
CBC News: The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation News reported that the government is considering prioritizing religious minorities from Syria when deciding which refugee claims to approve. Such a policy would leave Sunni Muslims, who compose the majority of the Syrian population, without any chance of resettlement to Canada, despite the clearly high risks they face as a result of the conflict.
Religious Refugees