A UK research project supported by market research solutions company GMI on behalf of the University of Liverpool and Muslim Voice UK, explores the detail of difference, agreement and shared concerns amongst UK Muslim and non-Muslim citizens.

THE RESULTS AND separate recommendations made by each organisation were discussed at a special event organised by GMI at the House of Lords hosted by Baroness Falkner of Margravine on 18th July 2006.

Over 1300 UK adults including 506 Muslims were surveyed online. They were questioned on their attitudes and experience of Islamophobia; discrimination and integration; the Muslim community; relations between the West and Muslim states; and extremism and the “War on Terror”.

The results of the research were separately analysed by Dr Colin Irwin, Institute of Irish Studies, University of Liverpool, and affiliated to the Institute of Governance, Queen’s Unversity Belfast; and Shaista Gohir, director, Muslim Voice UK. They have subsequently produced their own separate reports and recommendations which are published on www.gmipoll.com

Mitra Asilzadeh, managing director, client services, EMEA, GMI, explained why GMI supported this work with its market research software, panels and services: “Community cohesion is important to all of us. GMI were glad to power this research and contribute to the debate around community cohesion. As the Treasury moves towards the comprehensive spending review, the demands for data will increase. We believe this research and the reports produced by the University of Liverpool and Muslim Voice UK add to the intelligence needed to make policy”.

Based on their separate analysis of the research, Dr Colin Irwin, University of Liverpool, and Shaista Gohir, Muslim Voice UK, have set out their two different courses of action for the UK Government and the UK Muslim and non-Muslim communities. Dr Colin Irwin made the point that the UK Government is failing to learn and apply lessons learnt from the Northern Ireland peace process in how it could better manage Muslim affairs in the UK.

Dr Colin Irwin said: “A failure to identify and deal with the problems at the heart of conflicts can lead to increased violence as the UK Government knows from the Troubles. Employing methods pioneered in Northern Ireland, regular peace polling that puts under the microscope both problems and solutions to relations between communities can help to develop policies that will progress understanding and stability. There is an obvious international complexity to this conflict that has had tragic domestic consequences, but the findings of this research suggest there is a cross community consensus on these issues that offers hope and is something we should acknowledge and develop into an effective peace process both here and abroad.”

Shaista Gohir, director, Muslim Voice UK, set out a Ten Point Action Plan based on the research. Recommendations include: action by the Muslim community and police; breaking down barriers to integration and misunderstandings; tackling discrimination and Islamophobia; measures to deal with extremism; reviewing foreign policy; protecting human rights and more responsible reporting by the media.

Shaista Gohir said: “It was striking that Muslims feel more strongly about international issues than say their treatment by police or discrimination in the UK. It also appears that Islamophobia, Western foreign policy and human rights abuses of Muslims are contributing substantially to the alienation of UK Muslims. On the other hand non-Muslims are concerned about extremism, the lack of integration, Muslims not being proud to be British and the lack of tolerance by Muslims.However, the biggest threat to good Muslim and non-Muslim community relations is the misinformation on Islam in the media”.

“At the moment from the report it seems that the findings are that Muslims and non-Muslims are actually blaming each other for lack of integration. Whoever is to blame, I think we need to bring down the barriers to integration and have policies that will promote integration but only the government can do that.”

For further information visit: www.mvuk.co.uk www.peacepolls.org

Muslim Voice UK is an online polling organisation that aims to bring Muslim opinion in the UK to the fore to foster a greater understanding of UK Muslims.