Eastern Eye - Survey of British Asians' Attitudes

Eastern Eye Survey Confirms The Loyalty Of British Asians

A major opinion poll published this week by Eastern Eye, Britain's biggest selling Asian newspaper, shows that British Asians are overwhelmingly loyal to the country in the current action against terrorism. The survey was carried out by MORI, on behalf of the newspaper, with face-to-face interviews with 554 Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs and Christians before and after the defeat of the Taleban in Kabul.

The survey shows that:

• 90% of British Asians are loyal to the country in the war against terrorism
• Among Muslims alone 87% say they are loyal to Britain, even though 64% oppose the US-led strikes against Afghanistan.
• Loyalty to the country is almost equally strong among both young and old, squashing the myth that young Asians are a 'problem group' in the light of recent riots in Oldham and Bradford.

Among other findings:

• 54% of Asians think the US-led alliance is right to bring down the Taleban regime in Afghanistan and 62 per cent of Muslims say British followers of extremist groups are wrong to go and fight for the Taleban.
• Half of all those interviewed want to see any British Muslims fighting in Afghanistan put on trial for treason if they return to the UK.

The poll shows concern over race relations in Britain, which most fear have worsened since the events of September 11. There are signs of differences within the Asian community, although 70 per cent of Hindus and Sikhs say their view of the Muslims community has not changed since September 11. 80 per cent of Hindus and 72 per cent of Sikhs want to see extremist Muslim groups banned in Britain, but this view is supported by only 38 per cent of Muslims.

Support for Tony Blair's handling of the British response among Hindus and Sikhs is higher than the national average, with 66 per cent of Hindus and 74 per cent of Sikhs backing the Prime Minister. Among Muslims, however, support for Blair falls to 32 per cent.

The survey was welcomed by Asian leaders, among them Ashok Kumar, MP for Middlesborough South and East Cleveland, who said: "Asians are as loyal as anybody else in this country. They identify with Britain and what it stands for."

Technical details

• MORI interviewed 554 GB Asian adults aged 16+
• Interviews were conducted face-to-face, in street or in-home between 10 - 14 November 2001
• Interviews were conducted in 38 parliamentary constituencies with an Asian population of greater than 9%
• Results are based on all respondents (554) unless otherwise stated. The sample includes 116 Hindus, 319 Muslims, 100 Sikhs, 11 Christians and 4 people identifying with another religion and 4 people refusing or not stating the religion with which they identify. Each question shows the responses given by all Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs
• Data are weighted by age, gender and work status using 1996 ONS mid-year population estimates and the labour force survey to the known population profile of GB Asian adults
• An '*' indicates a finding of less than 0.5%, but greater than zero
• Where percentages do not add up to exactly 100% this may be due to computer rounding, the exclusion of "don't knows" or to multiple answers

Results

Comparison Key

• War of Afghanistan Poll [4/11/2001]
• Political Attitudes in Great Britain The Times [26/10/2001]
• War Of Afghanistan Poll Tonight With Trevor MacDonald / Granada TV [11/10/2001]
• Reaction To Attacks On America & Identity Cards Poll News of the World [23/9/2001]
• British Reaction To Attacks On America News of the World [16/9/2001]