a show of gratitude


A SHOW OF GRATITUDE


UN High Commissioner for Refugees praises Canada for “extraordinary generosity” By Lauren La Rose


Among the many refugees Filippo Grandi


encountered during his


mission to Canada, a hospital worker in Montreal had a particularly profound impact on the head of the UN Refugee Agency.


During the first leg of a four-day visit to Canada, Grandi met with Jean- Claude Puati, 40, a gay man who had been forced to flee persecution in his native Democratic Republic of Congo—and subsequently South Africa—after


facing discrimination over his sexual orientation.


With the help of the Government of Canada and UNHCR, Puati came to Montreal two years ago.


“It’s a beautiful story of how refugees who are given an opportunity, taken out of an impossible situation to a country like Canada, and can then rebuild their lives.”


18 / UNHCR CANADA


Upon arrival, with assistance from resettlement agency Centre Social d'Aide aux Immigrants (CSAI), Puati was provided with professional training and was able to land work as a cook at Notre-Dame Hospital.


“He told me, he has a job that gives him dignity and he can get back his sense of identity, his sense of being a person respected by others,” Grandi recalled.


“It’s a beautiful story of how refugees who are given an opportunity, taken out of an impossible situation to a country like Canada, and can then rebuild their lives and have a future and contribute to the societies that host and receive them.”


Puati’s resettlement to Canada is


encouraging—yet his story remains a rarity. Grandi said he is among a fortunate few as not many refugees get resettled—less than one per cent worldwide.


Canada has long been heralded


for its open embrace of refugees, having resettled some 621,000 people since 1979.


© UNHCR/Michelle Siu


“This is what I love about this country: that civil society, ordinary people, NGOs,


charity organizations are


very committed to helping people that come from abroad in search of safety, protection and better lives,” said Grandi.


“Unlike in some other parts of the world where this movement has


taken negative connotations,


here in Canada, there is a very positive attitude towards receiving refugees and giving them space for integration, and getting back, as we said for Jean-Claude, their dignity and their sense of opportunity.”


Grandi met with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Minister of Immigration, Refugees


and Citizenship Ahmed


Hussen during his visit, where he praised Canada as a “champion” for refugees while also encouraging the country to do more to help.


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