加拿大真的是难民的天堂吗？
每年都会有成千上万的难民逃离战火连天的家园，到加拿大这片土壤上寻求幸福生活的避风港。

Posted Saturday, July 29, 2006

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Every year thousands of refugees travel from war torn countries，seeking asylum for a “better life” on Canadian grounds.
每年都会有成千上万的难民逃离战火连天的家园，到加拿大这片土壤上寻求幸福生活的避风港。

With the little they have-the clothes on their backs and the shoes on their feet, they make their way to the Citizenship and Immigration Canada to claim their status as refugees in the country. Only a back pack with a few belongings is all they have to remind them of the lives they ran away from. Leaving their friends and often times their family, they can only hope for the best in an alien land with different customs. Coming from all corners of the world, Asia, Europe, Africa, and South America, they’re all in search of one thing, which they sometimes fail to gain. They search for the love which none of them felt when they were back in their home countries.
迫于衣不遮体的窘境，他们只能到加拿大公民与移民处去申请在这个国家停留的难民身份。也只有背囊里那 些残存的物品提醒着他们刚刚逃离的生 活。离开了他们的朋友当然最主要的还是家人，他们只能把唯一希望寄托在这片风俗习惯迥异的异国土壤上。不管来自世界的什么角落，亚洲、欧洲、非洲、还是南 美，他们都在探寻着一样东西，一样他们有时会难以得到的东西。他们在探寻一种在自己的祖国无法感受到的关爱。

One cannot compare what a refugee had before to what they have now; it’s obvious that they receive more in Canada. Welfare, free health care and in the long run the Canadian status, is nothing compared to what they got in their home country. But, despite all this, free things, there’s still something missing; their relatives, friends and familiar setting.
一个难民的过去所有和现在所拥有的一切是很难比拟的。显而易见，他们在加拿大可以得到更多的东西。福利、无偿的医疗保障、最终会拥有的加拿大身份，这些都是当初他们在自己的祖国所无法得到的。但尽管有这些无偿的收获，有些东西还是很难给予的，那就是他们的亲友和家人。

Trying to ‘fit-in’ and assimilate in a new country can be difficult, especially if you don’t speak the language that is common to all. This can be difficult for a refugee living in Canada- everything is foreign to them. This issue isn’t improved because of the way they are treated by the other citizens that consider them ‘strange’ because of the way they dress or behave. Even though Canada is made up of a cosmopolitan society, if you do not conform to the societal norms, no one will make it easier for you to adjust to the new system. Most of them will just ignore you. The refugees that come to the country feel that Canadians can be sometimes unfriendly, because of the way everyone makes sure to go out of their way to avoid helping others.
在一个新的国度的磨合适应不是那么容易的，尤其当你 不会使用大众普及的语言的时候。这对于一个居住在加拿大的难民来说是非常困难的，因为 周围的一切都那么陌生。由于他们独特的穿着举止，当地居民往往会以不同的方式来对待他们，而当地居民的这些方式使他们在加拿大困难的生活环境难以改善。尽 管加拿大是一个多元化的社会，但如果你不去遵守一些社会标准，没有人会为了让你适应这个新体制而特意去创造一些便利条件。更多的人只是会漠视你的存在。来 到加拿大的难民总是觉得加拿大人有时候不很友好，因为人们总是生活在一种避免去帮助他人的方式中。

I asked a refugee man from Sri Lanka at an Islamic gathering on 16th July 2006 how he felt about coming to Canada. He replied “Happy and sad.” He said it was because he had many opportunities here but no friends. “It is good but hard. No one helps you here. It is also good because you don’t have to be afraid but if no one wants to talk to you or offer help, you feel lonely and miss your friends.” When he was asked which country he preferred between Sri Lanka and Canada he said “If there was no fighting in my home, I would say Sri Lanka, but there is fighting and nothing safe there, so I choose Canada.”
在今年7月16日的一次伊斯兰集会中，我问了一个从斯里兰卡 来的难民，问他来加拿大之后感受如何。他回答说，“有欢乐也有痛苦。”他说他 在这边可以得到很多的机会但是却没有朋友。“这种情况好坏参半。这里没有人会帮助你。当然你也不用担心被人叫去帮忙。但如果没有人愿意和你聊天，没人愿意 帮助你，你就会觉得很孤单，开始想你的朋友。”当他被问到斯里兰卡和加拿大相比，他更喜欢哪个时，他说，“如果我的家乡没有战乱，我会选择斯里兰卡，但是 由于战乱和不安，我只能选择加拿大。”

On the other hand, this was quite the contrary for two Somali refugees questioned in a chat on the same day in an apartment near Fairview Mall. When asked how they feel about coming to a new country, the Somali woman said that she felt good. She said “I can do anything here and not be scared, I have rights here.” Upon further questioning she said “life everywhere is hard, I thought because there is everything in Canada, life here would be good, but it’s a different country with different challenges.” Her preference for a better country was Canada. When she was asked to choose between the two countries which she liked best, she chose Canada. She said “I like Canada- I miss my family but there is no future there. There you live to die and here you live to be free.”
同时，当天在Fairview商场附近的一个公寓中，我又问了两个 从索马里来的难民，他们却给出了截然不同的回答。当我问他们来到这个新 国家后感觉怎样时，那位索马里妇女说她觉得很好。她说，“在这我什么都可以做，也不用提心吊胆。我在这里拥有真正的权利。”面对更深一步的问题，她说， “在哪生活都不容易，我之所以这么觉得是因为在加拿大什么都有，生活在这应该会很好，不过它也是一个拥有其它挑战的国家。”她觉得加拿大是更好的居住国 家。所以当让她在两个国家中选择一个时，她选择了加拿大。她说：“我喜欢加拿大，我也想念我的家人，但在那边是没有未来的。在那边生活就是等死，而在这边 可以自由地享受。”

The Somali man said he too was happy to come to Canada. He said “I get job with good money, but wait too long for family to come to Canada.” He also said that he liked Canada best compared to Canada, saying “I like Canada because of money I get when I do good work-its better here I think.”
那位索马里男子说他也很高兴来到加拿大。他说：“我在这边有薪水不错的工作，但要等上很长时间让我的家人来加拿大。”他还说他非常喜欢加拿大，也愿意选择加拿大。因为他在这边有不错的工作，也可以挣到钱，所以觉得这边更好。

Settlement services funded by the government have gone a long way to support refugees in Canada. By providing them with the essential settlement requirements, English courses, teaching them how to get a job and register children in schools. But one may wonder if they have gone far enough to help them out with everything. Most of these refugees in the first place aren’t even entitled to some of these services which lead to another major setback. Because they don’t have most of their documents, they cannot get the assistance they require. Most of them are “refugees in limbo” Stuck waiting for their claim as refugee to be accepted, or to get their permanent residence or citizenship. The government tries to fulfill all their needs but only to some extent. All that’s left for them to do is wait, as their precious time slips away.
政府资助的定居安置服务在帮助赴加难民上已经做了很多。它为难民们提供了主要安居设施、英语课程，并教他们怎样找工作、以及如何安排子 女 入学。但有些人问道这些是否已经帮他们解决了所有的困难。很多难民最开始都没有权利去享受这些服务，这为他们提出了另一个难题。因为他们没有准备很多文件 证明，所以这些难民不可以得到他们所需的帮助。很多难民都深处绝境，一直在煎熬中期盼他们的难民身份被批准，或者获得他们在加拿大的居民或者公民身份。政 府的确在试图满足他们的需要，但是努力的程度还不够。这些难民除了等待别无选择，他们宝贵的时间也随之流逝。

In my opinion, I feel that Canada can be called a “better place” or home for refugees. This is because it covers every refugee’s need to a large extent.
就我看来，加拿大还是可以被称为一个难民的天堂或者家园的。因为它在很大程度上满足了难民们的需求。

作者简介： Filsan Abdiaman, a student from George S. Henry studying journalism at a Co-op placement at the Chinese News Group. This is my first published article. (Filsan Abdiaman是George S. Henry的学生，现在大中报进行新闻实习。这是作者发表的处女作。)

(来源:大中报 Filsan Abdiaman)