Canadian Media: Virani and Canada

canadian media: Virani, the parliamentary secretary for immigration, was asked about a recent cover story in the New York Times about Canada headlined, "Refugees Encounter a Foreign Word: Welcome." The moderator, David Rennie, asked, "Why is Canada so different " Virani responded by referring to different factors — including the role of Canadian media in sharing positive stories about the refugees, like those who helped with fundraising in the aftermath of the Alberta forest fires, according to Hamilton Spectator. He cited the role of Canada private sponsorship program, which other countries have been studying as a possible model in the midst of a historic migration crisis. Arif Virani shared some observations about his country experience during a briefing session on Capitol Hill attended by a number of United States congressional staffers and moderated by the Washington bureau chief of The Economist magazine. Virani said private citizens hoping to sponsor refugees have pressured the Canadian government to open the door, not shut it. "The response has been extremely overwhelming," he told a panel hosted by the U.S. National Immigration Forum. "To the point where it might seem a bit odd for people in this room, or in this country, but the criticism we get in Canada about refugee resettlement is, 'Why is it so slow Why is it not faster Why are people not coming sooner Why have you stopped bringing in charter planes ' "So there are challenges — but the challenges are very different." Canada and the U.S. have both received a mere fraction of the number of migrants spilling into the Middle East and Europe. Canada has welcomed 28,000 refugees so far and expects almost 45,000 by year end, Virani explained; in the U.S., the Obama administration has been dealing with political blowback over its plan to bring in 10,000. However, the political reaction in the neighbouring North American countries has been a study in contrasts. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.