February 6, 2024 1

The discrepancies, (as with the measures announced recently for Sudan), reflect systemic racism in our immigration system and underscore the need for an effective, equitable and transparent policy framework to guide emergency immigration responses. [...] The requirement for disclosing and explaining scars and injuries is particularly egregious in a context where people in Gaza are subjected to continuous displacement, indiscriminate bombing, and the near total collapse of the healthcare system. [...] We note again the inequity here, as the requirement for a family and financial sponsor were not present in the CUAET measures for those fleeing Ukraine, nor was family sponsorship the sole option for those Canada resettled from Afghanistan. [...] CCR also continues to urge consideration of means to accelerate processing for refugees in the region destined for resettlement in Canada who are affected by the widening shadow of violence, notably refugees in Lebanon and Israel. [...] Finally, we note that the shortcomings of Canada’s temporary resident pathway for Palestinians highlight once again the need for the Canadian Government to adopt a comprehensive, anti-racist and transparent policy framework that can help ensure immigration measures in response to humanitarian emergencies are effective and equitable, no matter where in the world they occur.