Canada's Syrian Refugee Policies Under Fire

It is ironic that the lethal attacks in Paris could define, or at the very least, become an important footnote to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's legacy. Along with a Cabinet Committee of nine ministers, the government is being tested at the earliest hours of its mandate to address predictable concerns that its election platform calling for the admission of 25,000 Syrian refugees by year end, may compromise the safety of Canadians. Battening down the hatches is an impulsive and politically expedient response to terrorism attacks. But the concerns for security although valid in their own right, largely arise from a lack of understanding of the refugee review and selection process. It would be short sighted to use the events in Paris as a reason to reverse or water down the government's policies on Syrian refugees who form part of the world's largest humanitarian crisis since WW II.