- Muslims mostly migrate to nearby Muslim-majority countries, not the West. Hindus in India are more likely to migrate to America and the U.K.
- Hindus make up only 41% of emigrants, while minorities leave at much higher rates. This reflects the troubling living conditions for Indian minorities.
“If Islam is so good then why do Muslims all want to live in the West?”
Many Islamophobes attempt to use the above rhetoric to discredit Islam. However, a new study published by the Pew Research Centre on August 19, explores the patterns, destinations, and dynamics of global Muslim migration.
The study asserts, approximately 80 million international migrants are Muslim. Notably, only 29% of the Muslim global population live outside their country of origin.
It was also found that when Muslims migrate, they tend to stay close to home in comparison to their non-Muslim counterparts:
“Muslims have moved shorter distances on average (1,700 miles) than migrants from other major religious groups.”
Moreover, among the top ten destinations for Muslim migrants worldwide, seven are Muslim-majority nations, with Saudi Arabia being the most popular nation and UAE and Turkey taking second and third positions.
Despite the modernisation attempts of Mohammed Bin Salman, Saudi Arabia remains the epicentre of Islam: As the birthplace of Prophet Mohammed (saw), where the call to prayer (adhan) resonates five times daily, home to the sacred sites of Hajj/pilgrimage, and where women continue to dress conservatively in public with Islamic attire. Consequently, the kingdom maintains its deep connection to Islamic traditions. This enduring adherence to faith refutes the misleading claim by Islamophobes that Muslims migrate to the West in an attempt to escape nations with any resemblance of Islamic identities or to seek a life of liberalism.
The study in fact mentions that Muslims mainly migrate to economically more stable nations and/or other Muslim nations.
South Asian Muslims predominantly migrate to the UAE and Saudi Arabia for labour opportunities (which the study mentions). However, these countries are increasingly being considered by Western Muslims for making Hijra, as well as by non-Muslim Caucasian Westerners seeking a more comfortable lifestyle.
This is not to imply that these migrant labourers are treated well but that’s another discussion for another time.
The majority of migrants to Turkey are Syrian refugees. However, Turkey is also on the verge of becoming an attractive destination for British Muslims seeking to make Hijra.
Indian Migration
- Although 80% of people in India are Hindu, only 41% of people leaving India are Hindu.
- About 15% of people in India are Muslim, but 33% of those who have left India are Muslim.
- Christians are only 2% of the population in India, but they make up 16% of the people who have emigrated from India.
- Hindus make up 15% of the global population (1 billion) but only 5% of international migrants, are less likely to move to other countries.
- Hindus have the longest average migration distance of 4,988 km (3,100 miles), frequently relocating from India to the US and the UK.
"Many more Muslims and Christians have left India than have moved there. People of other, smaller religions, like Sikhs and Jains, are also disproportionately likely to have left India," Stephanie Kramer, a lead researcher of the analysis said.
This data aligns with the troubling treatment of minorities in India, where cow vigilantism, the lynching of Muslims, discrimination in the job market, and the targeting of Christians for their evangelical activities are increasingly prevalent- leaving minorities compelled to leave their country of origin. In contrast, it is starkly clear that the only religious group content with living in India seems to be the Hindus.
