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India, Pak: Two nations, same anti-US sentiment
Published on Mon, Aug 13, 2007 at 22:02, Updated on Tue, Aug 14, 2007 at 02:17 in 
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While Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s statement to the Lok Sabha invited posterity and future generations to judge the value of the Indo-US deal on Civil-Nuclear Energy Cooperation, the timing and the tone of the statement reflected due concern for the judgement of the existing generation.
In this, he shares a dilemma that General Musharraf has faced in the last few years: how far is too far in cosying up to the US? Both Indian and Pakistani rulers have worried about public reaction to their ever-expanding engagements with the US.
The Indian Express-Dawn News-CNN-IBN-CSDS poll quizzed a sample of urban Indians and Pakistanis to get a sense of how they view the US and its role in the region.
The good news for the Prime Minister is that among the urban Indians the supporters of the Indo-US deal clearly outnumber the opponents.
Among the 2,000-plus respondents interviewed in the 20 Indian cities for this survey, there were 20 per cent informed supporters (who had heard about and supported the deal) as against only 10 per cent informed opponents.
Another 12 per cent offered indirect support, for they believe that the government is the best judge of matters to do with foreign policy which do not concern ordinary people.
The PM may have felt outnumbered in the Lok Sabha, but he can take some consolation that outside Parliament– at least in the big cities – the supporters of the deal outnumbered the opponents by three to one.
This is so not just among the supporters of the Congress but also among the BJP supporters. The less educated are no less supportive than the more educated, provided they know about this agreement.
On this evidence, a political campaign against the deal may not hold out much promise in a country where foreign policy issues do not drive political preferences.
But the Prime Minister would be well advised not to read too much into these figures, for these come with many riders:
Nearly half the urban population had not even heard of an “Indo-US nuclear deal”. Predictably, the less educated were less informed. Greater awareness of the deal and more information about its contents could change the balance.
These opinions could be very fickle. Indians do not hold very strong or stable views on matters of foreign policy and are largely guided in this respect by the party they happen to support. Thus what appears a favourable opinion could turn unfavourable if the overall political climate turns unfavourable.
Those who are less favourably disposed towards the Indo-US deal include the Muslims, a community the ruling party is desperately trying to woo.
In any case it may be misleading to see this support for the Indo-US deal as a sign of a change in the Indian attitude to the US. For a long time, the Indian public perception of the US has been marked by distrust as well as envy.
Outside the parliament the supporters outnumber the opponents of the Indo -US nuclear deal | |
| All |
| Support the deal | 20 |
| Opposed to the deal | 10 |
| Government must be right | 12 |
| No opinion | 9 |
| Not heard | 49 |
| Note: All figures in column percentages for those who have heard of the Indo-US nuclear deal. ‘No opinion’ excluded from the analysis | |
“War against terror” finds few takers in the region | ||
| Urban India | Urban Pakistan |
| Led ‘War against terror’ is an excuse for global hegemony | 84 | 78 |
| Deserves credit for bringing democracy in Afghanistan | 46 | 26 |
| Is plundering Iraq under the garb of bringing democracy | 75 | 66 |
| Note: All figures in per cent of respondents who agreed with the statement in each row. The remaining disagreed. ‘Don’t know’ and ‘no opinion’ excluded from analysis | ||
No consensus on holding Al Qaida responsible for 9/11 … | ||
| Urban India | Urban Pakistan |
| Al Qaida is responsible for 9/11 | 41 | 5 |
| No evidence against Al Qaida | 22 | 40 |
| Not heard of 9/11 | 25 | 36 |
| Note: All figures in column percentages. Rest heard, but had ‘no opinion’. | ||
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URBANEYE
Read Comment | Post Comment
Your accusations over a particular community shows your true mentality. This issue is not about religion, it is about our
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The deal is good as far as our energy needs are concerned. I fully endorse it! But this deal should
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I am not understanding why we are comparing with Pakistan.
Pakistan is our enemy we all know how the ISI is
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I don't believe that any Indian in his/her right senses has cause to hate the US!
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I would not comment on N-deal as I have no authority to comment and honestly I am not fully aware
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