Over a year has gone by since Canada experienced a remarkable influx of tens of thousands of refugees. Still, refugees continue to face barriers to settling in our country — barriers that Ottawa imposes, and that the dithering Trudeau government continues to defend.

Few Canadians realize that most refugees who come here from overseas have to repay the costs of their transportation to our country — plus interest. Canada is the only country in the world that charges interest on these loans. Refugees normally have to start repaying the loans 30 days after their arrival. The average loan for each man, woman and child is $3,090, due within two years.

The Syrians who came to Canada between March 2016 and February 2017 had their travel loans waived. That’s not good enough. The Trudeau government must waive the loans for all refugees. As a self-described advocate for human rights and mental health, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau ought to be horrified at the idea of imposing that kind of burden on people trying to re-start their lives after fleeing war and chaos abroad.

The circumstances facing Syrian refugees in Canada right now give a good indication of the pressure other refugees are under. According to a recent City of Edmonton report, a large number of these refugees — many of whom had their travel loans waived — are struggling to find employment and adequate housing. They’re coping with depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder. These and other barriers are preventing them from settling in their new home.

Again, these are refugees who had their travel loans waived. If they’re struggling, imagine what a family burdened by these loans is going through.

If the Trudeau government scrapped the transportation loans, refugees would need less government help. They would be able to leave behind marginal jobs and focus on the language and skills training they need to get a better paying job in the future. If the Trudeau government scrapped the transportation loans, refugees would need less government help. They would be able to leave behind marginal jobs and focus on the language and skills training they need to get a better paying job in the future.

According to a 2015 government review, 76 per cent of government-sponsored refugees use their social assistance to repay the travel loans. Nearly half of all refugees were unable to use the government settlement services intended to help them adapt to living in Canada — because they were too busy working in order to pay back those government loans.

Government officials are fully aware of the challenges refugees face — but Syrians taken in after February 2017, Iraqi refugees (who are fleeing the same war as the Syrians) and all other refugees have to repay those loans. By waiving the travel loans for some people but not for others, the Trudeau government has created a hierarchy of refugees.

In mid-August, Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen responded to a petition I launched calling on the federal government to waive all existing travel debts. Instead of committing to this, Mr. Hussen minimized the burden the loans impose on refugees and defended offloading the cost of plane tickets onto them, noting that not all countries give advances for refugee travel in the first place.

Mr. Hussen also announced that Canada had waived the travel loans for Yazidi refugees entering Canada this year. That’s good news; these refugees are the ones who survived an act of genocide at the hands of the Islamic State. But announcing this decision in response to the petition suggests the Trudeau government thinks it’s done enough — that it is not interested in waiving travel loans for all refugees. This decision also further entrenches the hierarchy of refugees under the Trudeau government.

Mr. Hussen likes to point to his government’s boost in funding for refugee services like mental health and settlement aid. But he’s still missing the point: Refugees can’t use the boosted services available to them because of the financial burden of the travel loans, plus the accrued interest. If the Trudeau government scrapped the transportation loans, refugees would need less government help. They would be able to leave behind marginal jobs and focus on the language and skills training they need to get a better paying job in the future.

A second government review of the loan program, promised 20 months ago, is still in progress. While refugees wait for Mr. Hussen to make up his mind, the Canadian Council for Refugees says many refugee teens are prioritizing jobs over schooling to help their families pay down their travel debt. This robs younger refugees of opportunities to volunteer in their communities, forge relationships with their peers and pursue an education.

Every day the travel loans exist, Canada puts refugees’ futures at risk. The Trudeau government did the right thing for some refugees. Now it must do the same for the rest.

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