http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-11-01/syrian-refugees-to-start-arriving-in-wa-be...About 1,000 Syrian refugees will begin arriving in Western Australia before Christmas, Premier Colin Barnett has confirmed.
It comes after the Federal Government agreed in September to permanently resettle 12,000 refugees from Syria.
Mr Barnett said the refugees' arrival would be staged over a number of months, and they would be resettled in houses throughout WA rather than in camps.
"We expect they'll start to arrive before Christmas, yes," he said.
Mr Barnett said he expected more than half of those who would end up in WA would be children.
The Claremont Showgrounds and Leeuwin Barracks were initially suggested for camp-style accommodation, however the Premier said those sites would not be needed.
"They will all be found accommodation. There may be some initial institution accommodation for those who need further medical care," he said.
"Many will be traumatised from the experiences they've been through.
"So we'll make sure we provide the best care we can for them, and those family groups will just be assimilated into the community both in Perth and in country areas, and that planning is well underway."
"A lot of people very generously have offered the use of homes that they own but are not occupied."
Mr Barnett said planning for the arrival of the refugees was ongoing, and discussions were being held weekly between the State and Federal Governments.
The important thing to remember is that Australia is ONLY taking refugees from Turkey and Jordan, for example, and not from Germany and other places where these people have traipsed halfway across Europe to. Australia is taking in the GENUINE refugees who just want to be safe. Kudos to Abbott for taking this stance and not taking in the country-shoppers.
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welcome to all LEGAL refugees to Australia (Read 3423 times)
