Syrian refugees say they feel trapped without adequate help

As B.C. prepares to welcome a "surge" of 1,100 Syrian government-assisted refugees, some of the families already in the province say support services are inadequate.

"It's been two months since I've requested just to have the exam for the English [course placement]," says government-assisted Syrian refugee Shadi Alradi, speaking through an interpreter.

Alradi moved into an apartment in Coquitlam a month ago.

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"The [Immigrant ServicesSociety of B.C.]respondedthat they don't even have 15 minutes to talk with me ...This makes me feel frustrated and depressed since I don't have any more time to waste."

Alradi sayshe feels trapped in his home: He can'tafford the bus fare to visit the library with his toddler, can't find helparrangingfor emergency dental treatment, andcan't figure out whenand if he will be enrolled in English courses.

His neighbour,AbeerLouaihaq,says she and her family "feel like strangers" because they haven't had an opportunity to learn English.

"Not knowing the language has created obstacles in everyday life,"she says, also speaking through ainterpreter.

"For example, I'm not able to communicate with my children's teachers in school. They try to talk to me and Ican't understand what they're saying."

As CBCreported earlier this year, wait lists can be oneto 16 months forfederallyfunded language coursesfor newcomers to Canada.

In anemail,Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada spokeswomanNancyCaronsaid the federal governmentis working closely with service providers in B.C., and that"adjustments will be made to some service provider agreements in response to changing client volume and needs."

LouaihaqandAlradisay they understand that settlement workers are busy, and emphasize they're grateful to the government of Canada and Canadians for welcoming them.

"The main reason that we're in such a rush is because we don't want to feel like the government is paying for all our bills,"Alradisays.

"We want to depend on ourselves. We want to have jobs. We want to blend in."

1,100 more Syrians on their way to B.C.

Settlement agencieswill become even more stretched in the coming days.

ISSofBCdirector Chris Friesen says they're expecting an "arrival surge" of 1,100 government-assisted Syrianrefugees in the next 10 days more than the agency typically serves in a yeardestined forcommunities across B.C.

Since Nov. 4, 2015, more than 1,770Syrian refugees have arrived in B.C., 1,411 of them government-assisted.

ISSofBCis under contract with the federal government to provide initial settlement supportto government-assisted refugees for their first four to six weeks in B.C., butFriesensays after theymove into permanent housing,responsibility falls tocommunity service providers.

Friesensays they'rebeginning the process of connecting local agencies with Syrian refugees, and he's confident newfederalfunding will easewaitsfor English courses.

"There are so many moving pieces tothisproject and some of them are still comingon board,"Friesensays.

"Additional Syrianfunds have been made available by Ottawato eachprovince ...So the intent is to have all of thosewaitlistsremoved as quickly as possible."

Friesensays he's not surprised refugees are frustrated.

"The dip that many refugees and immigrants experience begins around the two to three-monthmark after arrival in this country," he says.

"Anxiety, depression ... that's why it's so key to have those resources in place."

'Insufficient resources on the ground'

Federal NDP immigration critic JennyKwan says it's not just refugees in permanent housing who arehaving trouble finding adequate support.

She says she hasspoken to families who have been in limbo in hotels for more than a month.

"They still don't know what's going to happen to them, when they're going to resettle into permanent housing," she says.

"What we're seeing is there areinsufficient resources on the ground to assist with the resettlement process."

Kwaniscalling on the federal government to allowsettlement agenciesother thanISSofBC compete for contracts forinitial resettlement.

Friesen says ISSofBCisalready working with some other service providers, but he worries about distractions during the first few weeks.

"We're mindful on the one hand that, yes, folks would benefit from some additional programing on site, but on the other hand we don't want to deflect from our primary goal of getting them into permanenthousing."

With interpretation from ReemYoussef