Country and Religion: A Question of Faith

[Pictured] Over 30,000 people of different races unite at the biggest Islamic gathering in Britain aiming to deliver the message that interculturalism and religious integration is the basis for community cohesion in Britain (Ahmadiyya Muslim Association UK)

Ahmadiyya Times | News Staff | Opinion
Source & Credit:River online | march 17, 2010
By Munazza Abbasi 

In a country which is so religiously divided, you would not expect faith to be the decisive factor in the election, but a surprising new survey has suggested that it is.

"The UK isn't like the United States, but the religious vote is going to be a critical factor in determining who gets into Number 10," said Paul Woolley, director of the religious think-tank Theos, which published a poll on the religious vote.


The survey highlighted that despite the Iraq war and the restlessness over anti-terror legislations, 52% of Muslims intend to vote for the Labour party and 36% of the voters thought that Labour had been the friendliest towards Muslims.

The Tories were seen as the least friendly toward the Muslim faith by just under a quarter of people polled, against 12 per cent for Labour and 8 per cent for the Liberal Democrats.

These findings are echoed amongst Kingston University students with Labour winning popularity amongst students from ethnic backgrounds and religions. Of those who said they would vote Labour, half were of ethnic descent. Christian voters accounted for 42 per cent of Labour’s votes.

A first year biology student, Mohammed Alibaba, said he would be voting for the Labour party because “they are not as strict as the other parties and it is the best choice for such a mixed country,” he said.

Fifteen per cent of the students, who said they would vote for Labour, said they would do so to follow the trend that has existed for many years within their family of voting for the party.

One student, however, will be breaking this trend. A Journalism student, Janine Fotiadis-Negrepontis, said: “Everyone in my family has always voted Labour. However, for the first time in our family's history this may now change. Many of us have been disgusted with the government's decision to go to war, against the will of the country. I would imagine that many of them will cast a protest vote this time round and vote Liberal Democrat.”

Janine, who is from a white, working class background said that although she is not religious, she “staunchly” believes that “politics and religion should be kept separate at all costs.”

The British National Party secured no votes in the surveyed. Most of those who said they would prefer to vote for a party other than the far-right political party, expressed it was out of fear for people from their ethnic background being deported or for general concerns of restrictions being placed on people from ethnic backgrounds in the UK.

Lucy Jones, who is a Christian from the mixed Caribbean background, said: “If the BNP got in, we would be out of the country.”

Reverend Stan Brown from KU’s Chaplaincy said: “In recent years the Christian Churches in this country have always advised their members that voting for any party which has racist policies is incompatible with being a Christian.  Christian politics is not neutral – there are some things for which we will always stand.

“When there is an election, many of the larger churches will offer some very general advice to their members about voting.  This usually asks them to take into account issues of social justice, fairness, family policies and ethics in politics as well as whatever issues may concern us personally,” he added.

Despite the party’s consideration of lifting their ‘White-only policy” to let a Sikh member into their ranks, mainstream Sikh organisations were appalled.

The director of the Network of Sikh Organisations, Dr Indarjit Singh, said: “Sikhism stresses equality for all human beings. Therefore, Sikhs who are true to their faith will have nothing whatsoever to do with any party that favours any one section of the community.”

Following Labour’s attempt to reposition itself as the natural party of religious voters, rectifying the words expressed by Tony Blair’s communication’s chief, Alastair Campbell, who said: “We don’t do God,” it seems as if the Party have little to worry about when it comes to approaching students at Kingston University for religious votes.

Read the original post here:  A Question of Faith