Editorial: Refugees need our support

Syrian refugees need our help.

Allowing Syrian refugees into New Zealand is a contentious issue - although on first glance it may not seem to be.

In the news media and on social media few dare express their concerns about welcoming these people into the country for fear of being labelled heartless or racist.

As humans, the vast majority of us see the shocking scenes of refugees desperate to escape and want to help and, as I wrote last week, I'm glad the Government has agreed to do something.

But there are those who fear we will end up with refugees so accustomed to war and violence they may struggle to adapt to life in New Zealand, or that we may unwittingly allow in members of Islamic State posing as refugees.

They are valid concerns and there is a slight risk of both of those things occurring, but it's minimal and worth taking the chance to help some of those innocent people who desperately want a better life for their families.

Before a refugee can come here they first have to be recognised as a refugee by the UN after which New Zealand Immigration do further screening before accepting them.

I believe we can trust the systems to minimise the risk. That same risk exists when granting asylum to refugees from other countries and issuing visas to migrants or visitors.

Are we to stop allowing any foreigners to come to New Zealand for fear they could be terrorists?

Furthermore, there's no guarantee a Kiwi will not decide to become a member of Islamic State or some other terrorist group.

It's happened elsewhere. As for concerns about refugees accustomed to war and violence struggling to adapt to life here, that is where settlement support services come in.

We cannot put refugees from any country on a plane, fly them to New Zealand and leave them to their own devices.

They need support to find housing, learn the language and the customs, find work, make friends and maybe even get some counselling.

It must be a huge adjustment for many of them but with the right support they can learn to fit in and make the most of life here.