Author: Express News Service
Publication: The Indian Express
Date: April 29, 2003
URL: http://www.indianexpress.com/archive_full_story.php?content_id=22949
A majority of Iraqis actually welcome
the US invasion on their country though the jury is still out on whether
coalition troops should pull out immediately or stay back, according to
an opinion poll conducted by NDTV in Baghdad.
In what is billed as the first-ever
opinion poll in the war-ravaged country in the last 25 years, 668 men and
332 women took part in the exercise conducted on April 22 and 23 in 25
different locations in the Iraqi capital.
NDTV said the questionnaire included
8 questions including two on the perception about India for which the answers
will be released later. Twelve per cent of all respondents were Christians.
As per the poll, a sizeable 54 per
cent of the respondents believed that America did the right thing by invading
Iraq while 32 per cent felt it was wrong. A more detailed analysis showed
that the older Iraqis (over 40 years) Iraqis tend to be more pro- American
and anti-Saddam.
To the question ''Should America
stay on and help re-build Iraq, or should they go back now?'', 52 per cent
wanted the US troops to return immediately while 43 per cent felt the they
should stay on. And clearly while a large per cent of Muslims want the
Americans to stay on, many Christians in Baghdad wanted an American presence
in Baghdad to help rebuild the devastated country.
Terming the poll exercise as ''not
an easy task'' NDTV said its six-member team led by Special Correspondents
Ajai Shukla and Sanjay Ahirwal fanned out through the city of Baghdad,
covering over 25 localities, meeting men and women on the streets of Baghdad.
In a city completely ravaged by
war, with no power, water or food, getting even a photostat machine to
get a copy of the questionnaire was a problem, not to mention the 1,000
copies that were needed for the exercise. The channel said the problem
was solved by its translator, Ahmed Khalid Hamdan, who took the help of
an Indian company, PCP International Limited, which was made to open its
premises, while the core team provided power with a portable generator
set.
