By Jim Coggins

IS THERE a ‘Christian perspective’ regarding the 490 Tamils who arrived on B.C.’s shore August 13?

This is an opportunity for Christians to share the love of God, suggested James Grunau, executive director of Journey Home Community Association, which works with refugee claimants in Burnaby.

“Canada’s first priority must be to protect” the children, said a World Vision (WV) Canada news release.

The Christian relief and development agency funds two refugee welcome centres in Vancouver, and urged “the British Columbia church . . . to mobilize now to assist.”

Molly Finlay, WV Canada’s director of public relations, told BCCN the Tamils should be given a fair hearing to determine whether they deserve refugee status.

The Tamils “must not become scapegoats,” concurred archbishop J. Michael Miller in a statement released August 26 by the Archdiocese of Vancouver.

Voicing his concern over negative reactions to the Tamils’ presence in Canada, and the possibility that they may be treated unjustly,  Miller declared: “It is only just, that as we discuss federal immigration policy, we keep in the forefront the men, women and children currently in detention – all of whom have risked their lives to escape persecution back home.”

Canada, he noted, has “a well founded reputation as a nation of immigrants and refugees  ­ – and a long history of welcoming those seeking a haven from injustice.”

Who exactly are the Tamils?

Sri Lanka is a large island at the southern tip of India. Sinhalese, mostly Buddhist, make up 74 percent of the population. Tamils, mostly Hindu, make up 18 percent.

Since 1983, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE or Tamil Tigers) have been fighting to set up a separate Tamil nation. Their tactics have included assassinations, suicide bombings and killing moderate Tamils.

The Sri Lankan government has committed “massive human rights violations” against civilians, according to Amnesty International.

The LTTE has a worldwide support network among Tamil immigrants. The largest of these communities is in Toronto. Canada has labeled the LTTE a terrorist organization.

A report by the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada’s (EFC) Religious Liberties Commission described persecution of the small evangelical church in Sri Lanka, including killings and church burnings.

The war ended in 2009 when the Sri Lankan army overran the LTTE, killing 7,000 civilian Tamils and displacing 280,000. Most Tamils have now returned home; but human rights abuses are continuing.

Are the 490 who came to Canada Tamil Tigers intent on establishing a base to carry on the fight for an independent Tamil nation? Are they refugees? Or do the 490 include both? That is what Canada’s Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) must sort out.

Even those most sympathetic to refugee claimants recognize the problems. Grunau stated: “We shouldn’t be naïve – because we know that terrorist movements happen.”

There have been examples of immigrants using North America as a base to continue struggles back in their homelands. These include Irish settlers (supporting the Irish Republican Army), Sikhs (the Air India bombing) and Islamist extremists.

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There are also examples of legitimate refugees being denied entry. The Canadian government has apologized for at least two of them.

In 1914, a shipload of Sikhs on the Komagata Maru were turned away from Vancouver. When they returned to India, some were arrested, and 26 were shot in an altercation with British soldiers.

In 1939, Canada refused admission to more than 900 Jews aboard the St. Louis. The ship returned to Europe, and most of its passengers died in Nazi concentration camps.

Canada is an immigrant nation, accepting some 250,000 immigrants a year. These include about 150,000 ‘economic immigrants’ (skilled workers coming for jobs), some 65,000 ‘family class’ (coming to Canada to join family members already here) and about 25,000 refugees.

The United Nations counts 15.2 million refugees in the world and reports that in 2009, 112,400 of these were admitted to 19 countries for permanent resettlement.

Canada took 12,500, second only to the United States (79,900). Of the ones who came to Canada, 7,425 were sponsored by the Canadian government; and 5,036 were privately sponsored, often by church and community groups.

The rest of Canada’s refugee immigrants arrive in Canada without sponsorship. Between 30,000 and 40,000 people come to Canada each year and make a refugee claim; over half are eventually accepted.

Those who come to Canada and make a refugee claim are sometimes accused of being ‘illegal’ or of ‘jumping the queue.’ If they were trying to come to Canada as regular immigrants, the terms might apply; but refugees are in a different category.

According to Canadian law and the United Nations Convention on Refugees, Canada must allow refugee claimants to enter the country and make a claim. They can be sent back only if it is legally determined they are not genuine refugees.

The reason for this law is that people fleeing conflict don’t have time to complete the paperwork before they come.

Some nations – much poorer than Canada – have been forced to harbour, at least temporarily, hundreds of thousands of refugees fleeing from conflict in a neighbouring country. In the 1970s and 1980s, churches brought tens of thousands of Vietnamese ‘boat people’ to Canada through private sponsorship.

Since more refugees now make claims after arriving in Canada, Christians and churches have responded by setting up ministries to meet the needs of these claimants.

James Grunau told BCCN that while Canada needs to be vigilant against terrorists, Canadian Christians should not use that as an excuse to ignore biblical principles.

It is very easy for Christians to get sucked into society’s attitude of protectionism and entitlement, Grunau said. “But from the Christian perspective, all we have is a gift.” From Leviticus to the Gospels, “Jesus calls us to lay down our lives and open our arms to the stranger.”

He added: “We need to be leading the way – and be proponents of justice, mercy and grace.”

At press time, some Christians were taking practical steps to help the Tamils. Les Talvio, director of the Cyrus Centre in Abbotsford, collected clothing and toys for the new arrivals.

He told BCCN he has been deluged with calls from the media, and declared: “As a Christian, if someone needs food or clothing, I have an obligation to respond.”

Contact: cyruscentre.com, 604.859.5773

September 2010