The vast majority of people from countries all over the world would welcome refugees with open arms, with many even prepared to take them into their own homes, according to a global survey commissioned by Amnesty International.
The new Refugees Welcome Index, based on a global survey of more than 27,000 people carried out by strategy consultancy GlobeScan, found that 80 per cent of respondents were happy to welcome refugees to their home country.
The survey ranked 27 countries across all continents based on people’s willingness to let refugees live in their countries, towns, neighbourhoods and homes.
China was revealed to be the most welcoming country for refugees, followed by Germany and the UK. The countries that scored lowest were Russia, Indonesia and Thailand.
Just under half of people surveyed in China (46 per cent) said they would accept refugees into their own home.
More than half of respondents in Germany (56 per cent) said they would accept refugees in their neighbourhood, and a further one in 10 would welcome them into their home. Almost all Germans (96 per cent) said they would accept refugees into their country, with only 3 per cent saying they would refuse them entry.
People in the UK are the second-most willing to make refugees welcome in their own homes (29 per cent). On top of that, another 47 per cent said they would accept refugees into their neighbourhood. The vast majority of people in the UK (87 per cent) would let refugees into the UK.
People in several countries who have already accepted large numbers of refugees show no signs of flagging acceptance, with Greece and Jordan joining Germany in the top 10 of the Index.
Article by David Fuller