Study finds racial prejudice has increased in North

A significant number of people in Northern Ireland object to working with or living beside people of different ethnic origin, according to a new study by University of Ulster academics.

Dr Paul Connolly and Dr Michaela Keenan after interviewing 1,250 people found that Northern Ireland people were twice as likely to express racial than sectarian prejudice.

"Twice as many respondents said they would be more unwilling to accept and/or mix with members of minority ethnic communities than they would with members of the other main religious tradition to their own," they reported.

Over one-third were unwilling to accept the idea of having an Asian, African, Caribbean or Chinese person as a work colleague. One in four said they could not live beside people of these ethnic groups.

Views also appeared to have hardened over recent years. In a 1995/96 study one-third said they could not accept a Chinese person as a relative by marriage, while in the current study that figure increased to more than half.

Almost six out of 10 respondents said they could not accept Travellers living in their areas, while two-thirds said they could not work with Travellers.

The authors said overall the results presented a complex picture. While some attitudes were quite negative, nonetheless 83 per cent supported the need for effective equal opportunity policies for ethnic minorities, and 87 per cent felt that children should be taught about minority ethnic cultures and traditions.

Dr Connolly and Dr Keenan recommended that public authorities promote good race relations; the Equality Commission to spearhead a campaign promoting racial awareness; the Housing Executive to initiate a scheme to build up trust and understanding between the different groups; schools to teach about different cultures and traditions.

Mr Stephen Farry, of the Alliance Party, said some of the findings were alarming. They showed that racism was a significant problem. "Alliance is very conscious that Northern Ireland is becoming a multicultural society. It is vitally important that good community relations extend not only to relations between Protestants and Catholics, but between different cultures and ethnic groups."