Obama rails against anti-refugee rhetoric

From Yoshita Singh United Nations, Sep 21 (PTI) In a criticism of RepublicanPresidential candidate Donald Trump’s rhetoric, US PresidentBarack Obama said if America turned away refugees simplybecause they are "Muslim", it would reinforce the terrorists’propaganda and the "ugly lie" that the US is opposed to Islam. Obama, who hosted a ‘Leaders Summit on Refugees’ duringthe 71st UN General Assembly session here yesterday, said theworld was facing a refugee crisis of "epic proportions" withmore than 65 million people having been driven from theirhomes, more than any time since the World War-II. "Among them are more than 21 million refugees who havefled their countries – everything and everyone they’ve everknown, fleeing with a suitcase or the clothes on their back,"he said. "And if we were to turn refugees away simply because oftheir background or religion, or, for example, because theyare Muslim, then we would be reinforcing terrorist propagandathat nations like my own are somehow opposed to Islam, whichis an ugly lie that must be rejected in all of our countriesby upholding the values of pluralism and diversity," he saidat the summit attended by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon,Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Canadian Prime MinisterJustin Trudeau and Bangladesh Prime Minsiter Sheikh Hasina. He highlighted that in recent years, the US has put inplace intensive screening and security checks to take inrefugees as well as ensure the nation’s security. "Refugees are subject to more rigorous screening than theaverage tourist. We’ve seen in America, hardworking, patrioticrefugees serve in our military, and start new businesses andhelp revitalise communities. I believe refugees can make usstronger," he said. "So the challenge to our security is because whendesperate refugees pay cold-hearted traffickers for passage,it funds the same criminals who are smuggling arms and drugsand children. "When nations with their own internal difficulties findthemselves hosting massive refugee populations for years onend, it can risk more instability. It oftentimes surfacestensions in our society when we have disorderly anddisproportionate migration into some countries that skews ourpolitics and is subject to demagoguery," he said. For the past year, Trump has been warning that lettingrefugees in would make the US vulnerable to new terrorattacks. The brash tycoon has spearked a wave of criticismover his comments on race, immigrants and refugees, includingcalling for a ban on Muslim travelers to the United States. And this week, one of Trump’s sons triggered an onlinestorm with a tweet comparing Syrian refugees to a bowlcontaining an assortment of tainted and untainted candies. PTIYASABH