Half
of Norwegians don't want more immigrants
Attitudes towards immigrants have
softened slightly in the last two years, a new study shows, but almost half of
Norwegians still see major room for improvement in the integration process..
Some 46 percent
of Norwegians believe the integration process is functioning quite badly or
very badly, according to the latest “integration barometer”.
Two years ago, this figure was three percentage points higher. In 2005,
however, just 37 percent of respondents expressed dissatisfaction with how
immigrants were adapting to life in Norway.
Similarly, 46 percent of respondents were opposed to the idea of letting
more immigrants into Norway. This too represented an improvement in attitudes
towards immigrants: in 2010, 53 percent were opposed to welcoming more
newcomers, newspaper Aftenposten reports.
Slightly more than a third of the 1,400 people who took part in the
survey said they regarded immigration as a serious threat to commonly held
Norwegian values. In 2010, the last time the survey was carried out by the the
Directorate of Integration and Diversity, the equivalent figure was ten points
higher.
In a further example of a slight improvement in attitudes towards new
arrivals, 40 percent said they were sceptical of people with Islamic beliefs, a
figure that was 11 points lower than in 2010.
A clear majority said immigrants themselves should bear the
responsibility for their own integration, by taking measures such as finding
work and learning Norwegian.
More than half of respondents were critical of efforts by government
agencies and the general public to help immigrants integrate.
The survey also showed that 40 percent of respondents would find it
difficult to live in an area with a large immigrant population, although 80
percent said children benefited from attending schools with pupils from other
cultures.
Norway is home to a total of 650,000 first and second-generation
immigrants, a figure that has more than doubled since 2000.
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