DPA: Seven in 10 people in Singapore frown on homosexuality

Singapore - Seven in 10 people in Singapore frown on homosexuality, with the highly religious and those conforming to social norms most likely to be anti-gay, a study said on Thursday.

Conducted by Nanyang Technological University's School of Communication and Information, more than 1,000 individuals were queried.

The findings published in The Straits Times showed that 68.6 per cent of the respondents 'generally held negative attitudes,' 22.9 per cent had positive attitudes and 8.5 per cent were neutral.

'Intrinsic religiosity,' - viewing religion as the primary driving force in life - emerged as the strongest predictor of anti-gay sentiment, the study said.

On average, Christians and Muslims were seen as holding significantly more negative attitudes than Buddhists and freethinkers.

Those who conformed to social norms also viewed homosexuality negatively.

The law in Singapore criminalizes homosexual sex, although it is rarely enforced. The government told parliament recently that public feedback made it clear that the majority of people want the law to remain.

Most married people and the elderly also held a more negative view of homosexuality than those who were single and young, the study said.

© 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur