28 June 2021 – by Hazal Yilmaz
The Canadian Association of Refugee Lawyers (CARL) is preparing a report parallel to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees Canada’s invitation for the federal government to examine its own laws with relation to climate change and migration. In their view, Canada is not paying due attention to the impending crisis.
In a podcast, which discussed the report, different solutions were explored. For example, it was argued that climate refugees are in fact no different from those who can get refugee status by escaping from persecution based on race, religion and political opinion; and that on this ground, no disparate treatment is necessary. Or another point was raised, that climate migrants could fall under the existing category of those applying for residency in a foreign country, after a natural disaster made their previous residence uninhabitable. It was also stated in the report that Canada’s sponsorship program for Syrian refugees could be utilized and adapted to leave room for those fleeing climate change.
The authors of the report hope that the proposed reinterpretation of exisiting regulations will be met with support from the Canadian public.
