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Why are Syrian refugees hesitant to resettle in Canada?

Of about 28,000 refugees recently approached by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees to come to Canada, only 1,801 accepted. But the UNHCR says Canadians should not be alarmed by the rejection.
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A Syrian refugee man listens to an employee in the registration office at the UNHCR Headquarters in Amman, Jordan, Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2015. (Raad Adayleh/AP)
As It Happens6:08Why are Syrian refugees declining offers to resettle in Canada?

Canada is inviting in tens of thousands of Syrian refugees. But so far, many of them are reluctant to make the move.

When the United Nations recently approached 28,000 refugees to see if they were interested in coming to Canada, only 1,801 said they would like to come here. That works out to just six per cent.

"We absolutely don't have to jump to conclusions," Furio de Angelis tells As It Happens host Carol Off. "This absolutely doesn't mean that the option of coming to Canada and starting a new life in Canada is not a valid option."

De Angelis is the United Nations High Commission for Refugees representative to Canada.

Furio de Angelis, UNHCR representative to Canada (Twitter)

"These are the first initial figures that have been communicated by the Government of Canada," De Angelis says.

On Wednesday, the Canadian government released numbers that show for the week of Nov. 18, UNHCR texted 41,000 Syrians in Jordan and Lebanon. They were asked if they wanted to come to Canada. Just over two-thirds of those people had phones that still work. Among them, only 3,000 or so people showed up for UN interviews. And of those, about 1,800 expressed an interest to move to Canada.

"This is a complex program. It has started in a complex environment."

Ottawa has promised Canada will bring in 15,000 government-assisted Syrian refugees by the end of February and another 10,000 are being welcomed by private groups. A further 10,000 government-assisted refugees are expected to arrive by the end of next year.

De Angelis argues that the statistics fail to reflect the number of refugees who are still struggling to coordinate and finalize their relocation options. He adds that families have long-standing and complicated ties to their country that are difficult to permanently uproot.

"It's clear that families are scattered and this is one of the main elements of their decision making process," De Angelis explains. "A relocation of this kind, in their culture, in their society, requires a full family participation...They're paying mortgages. They are maybe renting a little shack or garage in which they live. These are all commitments that will have to be resolved."

A Syrian refugee woman waits at the registration office at the UNHCR Headquarters in Amman, Jordan, Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2015. Canada has launched a fast-track resettlement program for Syrian refugees that the nation's ambassador to Jordan says could serve as a model for other countries. (Raad Adayleh/AP)

De Angelis does not offer any specifics but says that the UNHCR is working with the government to make the necessary adjustments to better communicate with refugees and improve Canada's rate of resettlement.

"The information is spreading and this will result in more people coming in the next weeks and months, there is no doubt of that," De Angelis says.

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