http://www.worldpublicopinion.org/pipa/articles/home_page/528.php?nid=
<http://www.worldpublicopinion.org/pipa/articles/home_page/528.php?nid=&id=&
pnt=528&lb> &id=&pnt=528&lb

Muslims Positive About Globalization, Trade 

 
<http://www.worldpublicopinion.org/pipa/pdf/aug08/WPO_MuslimGlobTrade_Aug08_
quaire.pdf> Questionnaire/methodology (PDF)
 
<http://www.worldpublicopinion.org/pipa/pdf/aug08/WPO_MuslimGlobTrade_Aug08_
pr.pdf> Press Release (PDF)
 
<http://www.worldpublicopinion.org/pipa/pdf/aug08/WPO_MuslimGlobTrade_Aug08_
packet.pdf> Full PDF Version 

WPO_MuslimGlobTrade_Aug08_img.jpgContrary to the common assumption that
Muslims view globalization as a threat to their society, a new poll of
Muslim countries finds that globalization is generally viewed positively.
The poll was conducted by WorldPublicOpinion.org in six nations with
predominantly Muslim populations in different regions of the world including
Egypt, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Iran, Indonesia, and the Palestinian Territories,
plus the Muslim population of Nigeria.

Truck traffic at the Egyptian port of Nuweiba in a November 2007 photo.
(Photo: Chris Yunker)

WPO_MuslimGlobTrade_graph1.jpgAsked about "globalization, especially the
increasing connections of our economy with others around the world,"
majorities in six of the seven nations polled say that it is "mostly good"
for their country. Approval is highest among Egyptians and Nigerian Muslims
(79% and 78% saying mostly good, respectively). Sixty-three percent of
Azerbaijanis, 61 percent of both Iranians and Indonesians, and 58 percent of
Palestinians see globalization as mostly good. While support in Turkey does
not reach a majority, a plurality still calls globalization mostly good (39%
to 28%). On average across all seven publics, 63 percent say that
globalization is good for their own countries. Only 25 percent think it is
mostly bad.

The poll of 5,216 respondents was conducted January 12 - February 23, 2008
<http://www.worldpublicopinion.org/incl/printable_version.php?pnt=528#1> 1
by WorldPublicOpinion.org, a collaborative research project involving
research centers from around the world and managed by the Program on
International Policy Attitudes (PIPA) at the University of Maryland. Not all
questions were asked in every country. Margins of error range from +/- 3.2
to 4.1 percent.

The poll finds that most respondents also view international trade as good
for their countries and themselves. At the same time, many are concerned
about trade's effects on workers and the environment. However most express
interest in addressing these effects, not through protectionism but through
an international, cooperative effort integrating labor and environmental
standards into agreements on international trade. 

Steven Kull, director of WorldPublicOpinion.org comments, "These findings
run counter to the widespread assumption that people in the Muslim world are
anxious and hostile about the prospect of integration into the global
economy." 

International Trade

WPO_MuslimGlobTrade_graph2.jpgAsked whether international trade is good or
bad for their country's economy, majorities in five of six nations polled
say that it is good. Similar to answers on globalization, on average 64
percent think international trade is good for their country's economy, while
29 percent say it is bad. However individual nations vary. While Turks only
have a plurality positive about globalization, they have a strong majority
(72%) positive about trade. While Egyptians and Nigerian Muslims are the
most positive about globalization, they are the most skeptical about
trade--a bare plurality of Nigerians give it a positive rating (51% to 46%)
while Egyptians are evenly divided. The most enthusiastic public is that of
Azerbaijan, where 85 percent are positive. Palestinians and Indonesians are
also quite positive (70% and 60% say mostly good). 

Majorities or pluralities in five of six nations see international trade as
good for their countries' companies, Nigerian Muslims being the only
exception (though the Nigerian population as a whole is positive). Eighty
percent of Azerbaijanis, 70 percent of Turks, 67 percent of Palestinians,
and 52 percent of Egyptians see their national companies as benefiting from
international trade. Among Indonesians a 49-percent plurality agreed, with
39 percent seeing trade's effects as bad. Among Nigerian Muslims, though, 59
percent see trade as adversely affecting Nigerian companies, and only 37
percent think the effects are good. Overall, on average 59 percent see trade
as beneficial to their respective countries' companies. 

Majorities in every population polled think trade is good for consumers, on
average 63 percent. On this Nigerian Muslims lead the way, with 77 percent
positive, followed by Azerbaijanis (67%), Turks (62%), Indonesians (59%),
Palestinians (57%), and Egyptians (54%). Those who see trade as hurting
consumers were most numerous in Egypt (46%) and Indonesia (32%).

Most think international trade is also good for their own standard of
living--on average 56 percent hold this view, with 30 percent saying their
standard of living is hurt by trade. The exception is Egypt where 56 percent
say it is bad for their standard of living. Elsewhere, Azerbaijanis,
Palestinians, and Turks are the most positive, at 65, 62, and 61 percent
respectively. Fifty-four percent of Nigerian Muslims and 51 percent of
Indonesians agree.

The reservations expressed by Egyptians and Nigerian Muslims may be related
to the economic conditions in their country, where economic booms in some
sectors, often associated with greater trade, have been matched with growing
inequality. In Egypt, where ambitious economic reforms launched in 2004 have
contributed to growth rates of around 7 percent, poverty has nonetheless
increased over the past three years.
<http://www.worldpublicopinion.org/incl/printable_version.php?pnt=528#2> 2
In Nigeria, oil industry practices have been a focus of complaints and
opposition for decades, on both economic and environmental grounds.
<http://www.worldpublicopinion.org/incl/printable_version.php?pnt=528#3> 3

Trade and Labor

Views of the effect of international trade on workers is more mixed. While
trade is widely seen as positive for creating jobs, its effect on job
security for workers produces more divided responses. On average, a
61-percent majority thinks international trade is good for creating jobs in
their own countries (29% bad), while a 48-percent plurality think
international trade is good for job security (37% bad). 

Again Azerbaijanis and Turks are the most positive. Seventy-seven percent of
Azerbaijanis see job creation, and 57 percent see job security, as
benefiting from international trade--as did 66 and 62 percent of Turks,
respectively. Among the Palestinians, 62 percent think international trade
aids job creation, and 57 percent think it aids job security. In Indonesia,
a 55-percent majority says trade helps to create jobs, but a lesser
47-percent plurality thinks trade helps job security. On both points 37
percent disagree.

Egyptians are negative by a margin of almost two to one about trade's impact
on job creation and security: Sixty-four percent think that trade is bad for
job creation and 65 percent think it is bad for job security. 

Nigerian Muslims have divergent responses to the two questions. Seventy-two
percent think trade is good for job creation, while 64 percent think it is
bad for job security. These responses reflect the fact that international
trade can indeed stimulate the creation of new jobs while also engendering
rapid changes that undermine job security. 

Trade and the Environment

Out of all the effects posed to respondents, international trade's effect on
the environment elicited the most negative views from respondents. On
average across the six populations opinion is divided, with 44 percent
saying it has a bad effect and 42 percent saying it has a good effect on the
environment. 

Views vary considerably on this issue between nations. Majorities in three
nations see trade's environmental effects as negative--most strongly among
Egyptians (63%), Nigerian Muslims (58%), and Indonesians (56%). In two other
nations majorities take a positive view--Turkey (58%) and the Palestinian
Territories (53%). In Azerbaijan, a 42-percent plurality see trade's
environmental effects as good while 33 percent see them as bad.

Environmental and Labor Standards in Trade Agreements 

WPO_MuslimGlobTrade_graph11.jpgSome propose requiring minimum environmental
standards in trade agreements as a way to mitigate the potentially negative
impact of trade on the environment. They argue that this would subvert the
potential for companies to seek out countries with the lowest environmental
standards and for countries to compete by lowering their standards. Critics
say, however, that including environmental standards in trade agreements can
hurt developing countries' competitive edge by raising costs and
discouraging investment. The leaders of many developing countries oppose
requiring such standards. 

Even though the predominantly Muslim countries in this poll are considered
developing countries, the data show that very large majorities in all five
counties polled support incorporating environmental standards into trade
agreements. On average 84 percent approve, with no country having less than
three in four in support. 

Interestingly, the highest majorities come from the two populations that
express the most doubts about international trade in general, and the
highest level of concern about the impact of trade on the environment.
Ninety-three percent of Egyptians and 91 percent of Nigerian Muslims say
that trade agreements should include "minimum standards for protection of
the environment." Eighty-three percent of Azerbaijanis, 79 percent of
Indonesians, and 75 percent of Turks agree.

WPO_MuslimGlobTrade_graph10.jpgA concern that runs parallel to international
trade's effect on the environment is its effect on labor standards. Here
again there is concern that, in an attempt to cut labor costs, multinational
companies will seek out--and developing countries will provide--a labor
market with low levels of protections for workers. Thus it has been proposed
that international trade agreements include labor standards that would
require signatory agreements to comply with international labor standards,
such as prohibiting child labor and allowing workers to form labor unions.
As in the case of environmental standards, critics say that adding labor
protections to trade agreements would hurt developing countries by raising
costs and discouraging investment.

Although most of the six nations polled are considered to have low-cost
labor markets, all publics overwhelmingly support including labor standards
in trade agreements. On average 8 in 10 support them, as do at least three
in four within each nation. The highest levels of support come from Nigerian
Muslims at 89 percent, followed by Indonesians (82%), Azerbaijanis (80%),
Egyptians (77%), and Turks (76%). 

_________________________________________

1 Fielding in the Palestinian Territories was conducted Oct 8-15, 2006.
Fielding in Iran was conducted Oct 31-Dec 6, 2006.

2 David J. Lynch, "Egypt's economy soars; so does misery," USA Today, May
14, 2008,
<http://www.usatoday.com/money/world/2008-05-14-egypt-economy_N.htm>
http://www.usatoday.com/money/world/2008-05-14-egypt-economy_N.htm

3 Economist, "Another deadline goes up in flames: Continued gas flaring
harms both the environment and the economy," April 3, 2008,
<http://www.economist.com/world/mideast-africa/displaystory.cfm?story_id=109
79890>
http://www.economist.com/world/mideast-africa/displaystory.cfm?story_id=1097
9890.