VOA survey: 64pc think minorities more protected now

A survey by Voice of America (VOA) conducted in late October, found that 64.1 percent of 1,000 respondents think the interim government is offering greater protection to religious and ethnic minorities than the previous administration.

In contrast, 15.3 percent believe the situation has worsened, while 17.9 percent feel it remains unchanged.

It, however, says that the perceptions of security vary between Muslims and non-Muslims.

Notably, 92.7 percent of respondents identified themselves as Muslims.

The sample was evenly split between men and women. Slightly over half of the respondents were under the age of 34, and about a quarter resided in urban areas.

The survey revealed a divide in perceptions of safety between Muslims and minorities. Among Muslim respondents, only 13.9 percent felt the situation had worsened under the caretaker government. However, 33.9 percent of minority respondents believed their security had declined.

The VOA survey found that while 66.1 percent of Muslim respondents believe that the interim government is providing more security to minorities than the Awami League government, 39.5 percent of respondents from religious minorities agree with this notion as well.