Canadian PM meets Syrian-Armenian refugee family

PanARMENIAN.Net - During a campaign stop at St. Mark's Coptic Church in Markham, near Toronto, earlier this month, Canadian Prime Minister Harper privately met a newly-arrived Syrian-Armenian refugee family.

Leon (Levon) Danayan, his wife Mayda Moumjian and their two children, Araz and Kevork, who arrived to Canada on June 24, met Harper, his wife Laureen and their children Benjamin and Rachel prior to the Prime Minister's announcement that a re-elected Conservative government will provide a new three-year, $9-million program to support persecuted religious minorities in the Middle East.

Harper’s plan includes continued assistance to Iraqi and Syrian refugee who continue to face religious persecution and genocide. The plan includes a commitment to accept an additional 10,000 refugees from the region over the next four years.

During the meeting, Danayan presented a giant thank-you card to the PM on behalf of some 100 Syrian- and Iraqi-Armenian refugees who expressed their "heartfelt gratitude" to the Prime Minister and "the Canadian government's private sponsorship program." The refugees were sponsored by Toronto- and Montreal-based Sponsorship Agreement Holders "SAH".

The signatories of the card expressed their appreciation to the PM, "to the government of Canada, and to the people of Canada for their principled stand in condemning the treatment of Armenian and other ethnic and religious minorities in the Middle East and for initiating generous assistance programs, opening the doors of Canada, and providing us a new lease on life."

Commenting on the meeting, Vatche Demirdjian, chairman of the Armenian Canadian Conservative Association, said: "Once again our government, under the leadership of the Prime Minister, stood by the lofty Canadian traditions and convictions and demonstrated why Canada is a beacon of hope to persecuted minorities around the world and why the international community looks up to Canada as a champion of human rights and a defender of the vulnerable."