* US survey shows mistrust of America
in Europe ever higher, Muslim anger persists
ISLAMABAD: Eighty six percent Pakistanis
support President Pervez Musharraf’s policies, according
to an independent US global survey, which found a majority
in Muslim countries to justify suicide attacks on the
US and Western assets.
A Year After Iraq War, the survey conducted
by the Washington-based Pew Research Center, Pakistanis
expressed highly favourable opinions of their president;
86% rate him favourably and 60% view him very favourably,
by far the highest rating of any leader in the survey.
Views on Musharraf are more positive than
negative in Turkey, and are about evenly divided in Britain,
the US, Russia, and Jordan. Negative opinion of Musharraf
is strongest in France, Germany, and Morocco. In the predominantly
Muslim countries surveyed, anger toward the US remains
pervasive, although the level of hatred has eased somewhat
and support for the war on terrorism has inched up.
Osama Bin Laden, however, is viewed favourably
by large percentages in Pakistan (65%), Jordan (55%) and
Morocco (45%). Even in Turkey, where Bin Laden is highly
unpopular, as many as 31% say that suicide attacks against
Americans and other Westerners in Iraq are justifiable.
Majorities in all four Muslim nations surveyed doubt the
sincerity of the war on terrorism. Instead, most say it
is an effort to control Middle East oil and to dominate
the world.
UN Secretary General Kofi Annan is well
regarded in most of the nations surveyed, with majorities
expressing a favourable opinion of Annan in France (79%),
Germany (74%), Great Britain (65%), and Russia (53%).
Opinion is more positive than negative in the US (42%
favourable to 23% unfavourable), Turkey (43% to 36%),
and Pakistan (29% to 21%), though many have no opinion
about the UN leader in these nations. But these favourable
reviews are not universal. Majorities rate the UN leader
unfavourably in both Jordan (54%) and Morocco (78%).
About half of Pakistanis also say suicide
attacks on Americans in Iraq – and against Israelis
in the Palestinian conflict – are justifiable. The
survey finds, however, that Christians get much lower
ratings in predominantly Muslim countries than do Muslims
in mostly Christian countries. Majorities in Morocco (73%),
Pakistan (62%) and Turkey (52%) express negative views
of Christians.
