The residents of a small Quebec town currently seeing a swell of asylum seekers illegally crossing the border from the U.S. say they want to do more to help the refugees.
Hemmingford, Que., with a population of 800, is close to the border with Vermont. Like Emerson, Man., the town has seen an uptick in the number of asylum seekers from below the 49th parallel showing up to claim refugee status.
At a church meeting held in town Sunday, residents asked RCMP officers questions ranging from whether they could feed asylum seekers to why those who cross the border are handcuffed.
RCMP officers told the crowd that they wanted to ensure that those who cross are not terrorists and do not have criminal records in other countries.
"I think the RCMP, the provincial police and the Red Cross are all doing a good job," Debbie Beatter, with St-Andrew's United Church, said at the meeting.
But locals are dismissing concerns about the increase of asylum seekers.
"All the people I see crossing are families," said Helene Gravel, a Hemmingford resident. "I'm always asked by journalists 'Are you afraid of these people?' Absolutely not."
Federal cabinet ministers are set to hold an in-depth discussion this week of the pressures being placed on Ottawa by the rising number of asylum seekers and concerns that towns along the U.S. border will be swamped with influxes once the winter weather ends.
With a report from CTV Montreal's Stephane Giroux
