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Minister Says Immigrants Should try to "Feel British"
LONDON, Dec. 9 (News Agencies) - Immigrants who settle in Britain must accept British "norms of acceptability" and should learn to speak English in order to fit in, Home Secretary David Blunkett said Sunday.
Some practices of immigrant groups - such as forced marriages for Asian girls - should be seen as unacceptable, Blunkett told the British daily,
The Independent, on Sunday.
"We need to say we will not tolerate what we would not accept ourselves under the guise of accepting a different culture," Blunkett, a key figure in Prime Minister Tony Blair's Labor government, told the weekly newspaper.
He added that Britain's multi-ethnic community needed "sensitivity, not political correctness".
He said he supported English lessons for those seeking British nationality, but stressed that there was no question of English tests as a condition of entry to the country.
"We want to make becoming a British citizen more attractive and we want to ensure that there are light-touch programs to obtain naturalization," said Blunkett. "One of those would be a modest grasp of the English tongue so they can feel and become English."
The measure is expected to be part of government legislation proposed for next year.
Blunkett was speaking ahead of the publication of two independent reports Tuesday into race riots earlier this year in a number of northern English towns including Burnley, Bradford and Oldham.
The reports are expected to partially blame the activities of far-right groups such as the British National Party (BNP) for the racial tensions that have sparked violence.
They are also expected to say that conditions for unrest had been created over many years by communities' decisions to live in virtual single-race ghettos.
Rhiad Ahmad, the deputy mayor of Oldham, told Sky News that Blunkett's comments might offer ammunition to racists.
"I can visualize the BNP putting up election literature at the next local elections, quoting these words from the Home Secretary," said Ahmad.
If Asian Britons found themselves in ghettos, it was due to poverty and deprivation, not self-segregation, he said.
Charles Kennedy, leader of the Liberal Democrats, Britain's second largest opposition party, also said there was a danger Blunkett's remarks could be misinterpreted given the delicate situation of race relations in the country.
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