Majority (71%) Of Canadians Think Canada Did "Right Thing" By Not Supporting U.S. In War Against Saddam Hussein
Three in ten (28%) Canadians say "I supported the War in Iraq and feel it was justified even if no weapons of mass destruction have been found yet because Saddam Hussein has been removed from power and reconstruction is underway," and two in ten (21%) say "I initially opposed the war in Iraq, but now feel it was a good thing even if no weapons of mass destruction are found because Saddam Hussein has been removed from power and reconstruction is underway."
Thinking about how things have gone in Iraq since the United States went to war there in March 2003, Canadians are almost divided about whether the United States or the Bush Administration made the right decision or a mistake in going to war in Iraq. Nearly half (47%) say, the United States/Bush Administration "made a mistake," while slightly less (44%) say it was "the right decision." The remaining one in ten (9%) "doesn't know."
As far as Saddam Hussein facing a trial, most (58%) opt for a more "international" setting --30% support an international tribunal and 28% support the International Court of Justice in the Hague, as opposed to a more local Iraqi court (30%) or U.S. led military tribunal (5%).
These are the findings of an Ipsos-Reid/Globe and Mail/CTV poll conducted between December 16th and December 18th, 2003 and December 9th and December 12th, 2003. The telephone survey is based on a randomly selected sample of 1,055 across the country. With a sample of this size, the results are considered accurate to within 1773.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, of what they would have been had the entire adult Canadian population been polled. The margin of error will be larger within regions and for other sub-groupings of the survey population. These data were statistically weighted to ensure the sample's regional and age/sex composition reflects that of the actual Canadian population according to the 2001 Census data.
On reflection, the majority of Canadians indicate our country was "right" in sitting out the US led war on Iraq...
Seven in ten (71%) Canadians think "Canada did the right thing by not supporting the United States in it's was against Saddam Hussein." One-quarter (26%) think Canada did the "wrong thing" and 3% "don't know."
- Residents of Quebec (88%) are significantly more likely to think Canada did the "right thing." Following residents of Quebec, residents of British Columbia (71%) are the most likely to think Canada did the "right thing," followed by residents of Ontario (67%), Atlantic Canada (64%), Saskatchewan/Manitoba (61%), and Alberta (60%).
- University graduates (79%) are more likely than others (69%) to think Canada did the "right thing."
Some Have Modified Their Views, But Half (48%) Opposed The War and Still Do...
Asked which of a series of statement comes closest to their own point of view, half (48%) of Canadians say "regardless of Saddam Hussein having been removed from power, I still oppose the war in Iraq because it was not sanctioned by the United Nations and there has not been any credible evidence to date that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction in the months leading up to the war." Three in ten (28%) Canadians say "I supported the War in Iraq and feel it was justified even if no weapons of mass destruction have been found yet because Saddam Hussein has been removed from power and reconstruction is underway," and two in ten (21%) say "I initially opposed the war in Iraq, but now feel it was a good thing even if no weapons of mass destruction are found because Saddam Hussein has been removed from power and reconstruction is underway." The remaining 3% "don't know."
- Except for Alberta, Canadians across the country are more likely to relate to the statement, "regardless of Saddam Hussein having been removed from power, I still oppose the war in Iraq because it was not sanctioned by the United Nations and there has not been any credible evidence to date that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction in the months leading up to the war" than others. Those most likely to feel this way are residents of Quebec (54%) and British Columbia (53%), followed by residents of Ontario (47%), Atlantic Canada (44%), and Saskatchewan/Manitoba (42%). Albertans (42%) are more likely to say, "I supported the War in Iraq and feel it was justified even if no weapons of mass destruction have been found yet because Saddam Hussein has been removed from power and reconstruction is underway."
- Canadians 35-54 years of age (32%) are more likely than those who are younger (23%) or older (27%) to say, "I supported the War in Iraq and feel it was justified even if no weapons of mass destruction have been found yet because Saddam Hussein has been removed from power and reconstruction is underway." Canadians 18-34 years of age (25%) are more likely than their middle-aged (18%) and older (21%) counterparts to say, "I initially opposed the war in Iraq, but now feel it was a good thing even if no weapons of mass destruction are found because Saddam Hussein has been removed from power and reconstruction is underway."
- Men (33%) are more likely than women (23%) to say, "I supported the War in Iraq and feel it was justified even if no weapons of mass destruction have been found yet because Saddam Hussein has been removed from power and reconstruction is underway."
- Canadians with a university degree (58%) are more likely than others (44%) to say, "regardless of Saddam Hussein having been removed from power, I still oppose the war in Iraq because it was not sanctioned by the United Nations and there has not been any credible evidence to date that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction in the months leading up to the war."
Thinking about how things have gone in Iraq since the United States went to war there in March 2003, Canadians are almost divided about whether the United States or the Bush Administration made the right decision or a mistake in going to war in Iraq. Nearly half (47%) say, the United States/Bush Administration "made a mistake," while slightly less (44%) say it was "the right decision." The remaining one in ten (9%) "doesn't know."
- Residents of Quebec (53%), British Columbia (51%), Atlantic Canada (48%), and Ontario (47%) are more likely to think the United States/Bush Administration made "a mistake," while residents of Alberta (63%) are more likely to think they made "the right decision," and residents of Saskatchewan/Manitoba are more likely to be divided (42%/42%, 17% "don't know").
- University graduates (59%) are more likely than others (42%) to think the United States/Bush Administration made "a mistake."
As For the Trial of Saddam, Canadians Tile International For Forum For Fair Trial...
Asked if Saddam Hussein faces trial which forum would be the most likely to produce a fair trial, Canadians tilt decidedly international ---a total of 58% support some type of international forum (International Tribunal, 30%, or International Court of Justice as in the Hague, 28%) as opposed to a more local Iraqi court (30%) or a US led military tribunal (5%). Six percent say they "don't know."
- Residents of Quebec (53%) are more likely to think if Saddam Hussein faces trial it should be "an International tribunal," residents of Atlantic Canada (39%) and Ontario (36%) are more likely to say "an Iraqi court," residents of British Columbia (35%) and Alberta (35%) "the International Court of Justice," while residents of Saskatchewan/Manitoba are more likely to say "an Iraqi court" (31%) or "the International Court of Justice" (31%).
- Canadians 18-34 years of age (37%) are more likely than their middle-age (27%) and older (29%) counterparts to say "an International tribunal," Canadians 55 and older (36%) are more likely than their middle-age (29%) and younger (24%) counterparts to say an "Iraqi court," while Canadians 35-54 years of age (33%) are more likely than their younger (26%) and older (26%) counterparts to say "the International Court of Justice."
- Canadians with a university degree (38%) are more likely than others (24%) to say "the International Court of Justice," while they (25%) are less likely than others (32%) to say "an Iraqi court."
Please see attachments for PDF release and detailed tables.
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For more information on this news release, please contact:
John Wright
Senior Vice-President
Ipsos-Reid Public Affairs
(416) 324-2900
