Refugees and Migration

The United Church is concerned for the millions of forcibly uprooted people in the world-our brothers and sisters-alternately called refugees, internally displaced people, or migrants. One in 50 people in God's world is forcibly uprooted.

Within Canada, our public witness is for the recognition of refugee and migrant rights. We believe that "loving" our neighbours, especially the victims of political, civil, or economic violence, means that we must be actively involved in God's world and recognize our complicity in our neighbours' suffering.

The United Church addresses the needs of the displaced abroad through our partners who work on humanitarian issues and human rights. Refugees and migrants, increasingly denied access to refugee or migration programs, have few choices:

• to be warehoused for generations in refugee camps
• to stay at home or return home to lose children to starvation or war
• to try irregular migration and risk becoming prey of human trafficking

This situation affects us all.

Note: If you are considering seeking sponsorship as a refugee in Canada, please read the criteria in Who Can Be Sponsored.

Canada is an immigrant or resettlement country. The United Church has always worked with and for refugees and immigrants.

The United Church is committed to

• addressing the root causes that create refugees
• working for durable solutions abroad and within Canada
• advocating for just and fair refugee determination procedures that ensure the right of asylum
• involving ourselves in refugee sponsorship and integration of newcomers

Refugee ministry includes the coordination and support for private refugee sponsorship and support for refugee claimants within Canada. We believe receiving refugees as equal members of society and advocating for their rights is an important role of the church.

The following agencies are key partners in working for refugee rights:

• United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees* (UNHCR)-The UN Refugee Agency
• Canadian Council for Refugees*

Refugee Sponsorship

Since 1979, in response to the Southeast Asian "boat people," the United Church has held a Sponsorship Agreement with the Government of Canada to facilitate congregational (private) refugee sponsorships. The Private Sponsorship of Refugees (PSR) Program* is described on the Citizenship and Immigration Canada website. We also actively participate in and support the Refugee Sponsorship Training Program* to assist refugee sponsors.

The United Church supports the private refugee sponsorship for those in need of resettlement. But ultimately, the decision as to whether a refugee applicant is accepted into Canada is determined by the Government of Canada. Please review the criteria in Who Can Be Sponsored.

Although the United Church is committed to getting more refugees into Canada, this does not mean submitting large numbers of sponsorships. We sponsor only cases we believe to be eligible, credible, and in need of resettlement and try for a balance of sponsorships that are named by congregations or overseas church partners and sponsorships that are referred by visa offices aborad. Our numbers are also relatively low because we insist on hands-on and/or financial support of refugees by sponsors.

The United Church guide to refugee sponsorship, And You Also Welcomed Me, is intended for United Church members who are thinking about sponsoring a refugee. The handbook raises sponsorship considerations and outlines the steps involved in preparing for sponsorship and settlement.

For more information, please contact:

• Khwaka Kukubo
  Refugee Program Advisor
  The United Church of Canada
  Tel: 416-231-5931 ext. 4066
  Toll-free: 1-800-268-3781 ext. 4019