The first arrivals of 25,000 Syrian refugees expected to make their way into Canada before the end of the year will make their way through major cities like Toronto and Montreal, before being temporarily housed in military bases across the country.
Soldiers and military personnel at CFB Kingston and CFB Trenton in Ontario to make room.
A spokesperson for the Department of National Defence told 麻豆传媒 Monday that some personnel who are temporarily staying at CFB Valcartier in Quebec for training and courses are being moved to another wing 鈥渢o free up contiguous space for possible refugee accommodation.鈥�
The same thing may happen at CFB Edmonton if space is needed there.
Debbie Douglas, the executive director of the Ontario Council of Agencies Serving Immigrants, said some refugees may also temporarily stay in decommissioned hospitals until they find permanent housing.
Douglas told CTV Toronto that many refugees will be then be sent to one of the 36 reception centres across Canada. There are six of them in Ontario, including facilities in Toronto, Ottawa and Windsor.
鈥淎t the refugee centre they are housed for about six weeks and in that time you identify what services they require, what kind of emergency support they may need,鈥� Douglas said.
Some experts are concerned about the efforts that will be made to resettle the refugees, including aspects such as education.
"The education system is going to be really important because many of the children have been outside of school and not able to attend," said Naomi Alboim, chair of the Policy Forum at Queen's University.
Scott Heatherington, former deputy director of government refugee intake, questioned whether provinces have the adequate resources to care for many refugees who will be living with the effects of escaping war-torn Syria.
"When dealing with people with special needs, people suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (and) victims of torture, the social safety network in many of provinces just isn't as robust as it once was," he said.
However, Health Minister Jane Philpott, chair of the cabinet committee overseeing the refugee plan, says the appropriate support will be provided.
"It's incredibly important to us, of course, that these refugees are well settled and well integrated into Canada, and we are going to do our utmost to make sure that's done as well as we possibly can," she said.
The refugee issue was featured prominently during Prime Minister Justin Trudeau鈥檚 meeting with Canadian premiers on Monday.
After the summit, Trudeau said all of the premiers were co-operative on the issue.
"We all understand in every corner of this country that people coming to build a better life for themselves, their family and their communities, here in this country, is part of what has built this country," he said.
Notley 'prepared'
In an appearance on CTV's Power Play, Alberta Premier Rachel Notley said her province is "quite prepared" to accept the incoming Syrians, and expects the government to perform their "due diligence" over security issues.
However, Notley said that cities such as Edmonton and Calgary are already facing waitlists for subsidized housing, and they may have to find more "creative" ways to house refugees and turn to the federal government for support.
She added that settling in "little isolated places" in province is out of the question.
"You want folks to come here, you want them to settle, to integrate, to get know their neighbours and to be a part of the community to which their moving," said Notley.
"You need to bring them into communities and to ensure there are supports there for them to become part of those communities."
Some of Notley's counterparts are also supportive of the plan.
"They're people who have come through a lot and are resilient," said Prince Edward Island Premier Wade MacLauchlan.
"One family I met with a week after they got here had a new baby daughter. When you see that you get well beyond the abstract question of security."
While Manitoba Premier Greg Selinger echoed Notley's call for increased federal support.
"They're going to have to put some resources in at the federal level, and I identified housing as one of the big issues we're going to have to work," he said.
Priority settlement?
Earlier on Tuesday, the Liberals came under fire for a practice that gives priority to the settlement of women and children.
Peter Showler, a former Immigration and Refugee Board chair, told 麻豆传媒 last week that the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees performs a "triage of refugees who are eligible for resettlement."
UN officials who are on the ground tend to prioritize women, children and families.
"The classic example of that is first of all is children; secondly women," said Showler.
"So you're going to see a lot of single family, women-led families coming over."
On Monday, NDP Leader Tom Mulcair said that officials should not to exclude single men as potential refugees.
鈥淲e do not believe that it is appropriate to make a vast generalization about a category of refugees and exclude them ahead of any processing, just because of who they are,鈥� Mulcair said at a press conference in Ottawa.
鈥淲hile security concerns remain of vital importance, will a young man who lost both parents be excluded from Canada鈥檚 refugee program?鈥� the NDP leader asked.
鈥淲ill a gay man who is escaping persecution be excluded?鈥� he added. 鈥淲ill a widower who is fleeing (ISIS) after seeing his family killed be excluded?鈥�
Mulcair said that, 鈥渆xcluding them in advance is not the Canadian way,鈥� and likened it to 鈥渢he previous Conservative government鈥檚 plan to prioritize certain religious groups over others.鈥�
With a report from CTV Toronto鈥檚 Austin Delaney
