
Remind me again, how many billions of taxpayer dollars are we going to shower on these people this year?
ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistanis largely disapprove of the U.S. raid that killed Osama bin Laden, with a majority believing the al-Qaida chief’s death is a bad thing and relations between Washington and Islamabad will suffer as a result, new polling data show.
The findings of two Pew Research Center surveys reflect widespread anti-Americanism in a country where many view the U.S. as the main reason for rising Islamist violence that has killed thousands, even as many of the same Pakistanis hold the militants behind such attacks in low regard.
The survey results also show a deep pessimism among Pakistanis about the future of their nation and the caliber of their leaders. Roughly nine in 10 Pakistanis say they are dissatisfied with the direction the country is heading.
The surveys were part of the Pew Center’s Global Attitudes Project. The first was conducted from April 10-26 among 1,970 Pakistanis. The second was taken May 8-15 among 1,251 Pakistanis and was nearly identical to April’s poll except that it also included questions about bin Laden.
The May survey found that 63 percent of Pakistanis disapproved of the bin Laden raid, while 10 percent approved and 27 percent gave no opinion.
More than half — 55 percent — saw the terror chief’s death as a bad thing, 14 percent saw it as a good thing, while around one-third expressed no opinion. And of those surveyed, 51 percent said the relations between the U.S. and Pakistan would worsen as a result of the raid.
The May poll also showed that the bin Laden raid had little to no impact on Pakistani attitudes toward the U.S., which were already overwhelmingly negative.
Nearly 70 percent of Pakistanis surveyed view the U.S. as an enemy, while fewer then 1 in 10 see it as a partner, both surveys showed. Around three in four have an unfavorable opinion of America, both polls showed.
