Survey: 6 of 10 Chinese demand Norway apologize
Amid scant awareness by the public of Chinese prisoner Liu Xiaobo, nearly six out of 10 people polled said the Norwegian Nobel Committee should withdraw the Peace Prize and apologize for the decision to award it to him, a survey has found.
A total of 43.6 percent of respondents agreed that the main reason the committee gave this year's prize to Liu was to put pressure on China and force China to accept the Western's political system, while another 31.5 percent said it was an attempt by the committee to permeate Western values into China, according to the Global Poll Center run by the Global Times.
The poll was conducted by phone from Friday through Sunday. It was designed to determine the recognition of Liu Xiaobo among the Chinese general public, as well as the opinions and views about the Nobel Peace Prize.
The poll randomly surveyed residents in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. As of 5:30 pm Sunday, a total of 866 questionnaires had been obtained.
In all, 58.6 percent of the interviewees said the committee should take back the prize and apologize to the Chinese people. More than half of them said China should keep Liu detained until his parole date. And 17.3 percent polled said Liu should be released at an appropriate time and be allowed to leave China. Finally, 9 percent said Liu should be released immediately and go to Norway to accept the prize.
The poll also found a low recognition of Liu among the public in China, as more than 75 percent of respondents had no idea who the winner of this year's Nobel Peace Prize was.
Only 14.2 percent of Guangzhou respondents said they had knowledge of this year's winner, while 27.3 percent of Beijing respondents and 28 percent of Shanghai respondents, respectively, said they were aware of the winner this year.
The poll also indicated that more than 53.7 percent of respondents said they heard of Liu Xiaobo because of the Peace Prize.
Ni Feng, director of the Institute of American Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times that "the poll indicates that the general public has no interest in the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. Housing prices and income are of more importance."
The West attempts to pressure China and instill its political system, or its values - the two most preferred options - the poll showed, with 43.6 percent and 31.5 percent in favor of each option.
In addition, 20 percent of respondents said they believed the Western world attempts to make China appear disgusting.
Less than 8 percent of respondents said the awarding has no political purpose and Liu deserved credit, the poll showed.
"In the past two years, when it comes to promoting human rights, the West tried to make use of social conflicts and the grass roots. Liu is only a symbol, but it would wreak havoc in Chinese society if it was mingled with China's social problems," Ni warned.
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