Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration

Comité permanent de la citoyenneté et de l'immigration

For immediate release

Ottawa, July 04, 2016 -

In July 2016, the House of Commons Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration will conduct a study on Immigration Measures to Protect Vulnerable Groups. While it is unusual for standing committees to conduct studies in the summer months, the ongoing importance and urgency of the topic was recognized unanimously by all Members.

In deciding to undertake this study, the Committee was strongly influenced by the report issued on 16 June 2016 by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights that described the urgency facing the plight of the Yazidi people. The report was drafted by the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic, entitled “They came to destroy”: ISIS Crimes Against the Yazidis. Related issues also arose in the Committee’s study of the Federal Government’s Initiative to Resettle Syrian Refugees to Canada.

Specifically, the Committee will be examining ways for Canada to support vulnerable groups in inaccessible regions, including accelerated resettlement and other humanitarian measures. As part of its study, the Committee will consider whether any changes may be needed to immigration policy and legislation.

Organizations and individuals who wish to provide their views and comments to the Committee are invited to submit a written brief through the Clerk of the Committee. The deadline for written submissions is 13 July 2016.