Angry, young and Asian

Oldham, Burnley and now Bradford. The flames of racial violence have been spreading across the north of England with a ferocity that has not been seen in decades.

In the latest clashes in Bradford, nearly 1,000 youths of Asian origin fought pitched battles with police. In the other towns as well, angry young Asians battled the police and destroyed property. In each of these instances, the violence had been sparked by attacks on Asians by supporters of the racist National Front. But the scale and intensity of the subsequent rioting has taken all by surprise.

The causes of the racial tension, as well as the simmering anger in young British-born Asians, lie in the depressed economic and social conditions that prevail in large areas of Britain's old industrial heartland. Economic and social deprivation has hit both immigrants and locals, and has created fertile ground on which racist organizations such as the National Front can sow their poisonous gospel.

The recent riots should not obscure the fact that in the last few decades Britain has met with considerable success in creating an open, multi-cultural society. Compared to other countries in Europe, such as France and Germany, Britain has had an enviable record in race relations.

But the events of the last few months show how fragile is the social peace that underpins racially mixed communities in the north of England. Towns like Bradford and Burnley have had a long history of peaceful race relations, and local community leaders were completely unprepared for the violence that broke out.

The British National Party, a breakaway from the National Front, has made recent electoral gains in northern towns, indicating that their message is getting through to some of the white population. But it is still a small minority who listen to the extremists. It is important that Britain's traditions of tolerance and openness are preserved despite these tensions, and despite the provocation of extremists.

To do this, it is vital for Britain to seriously address the social and economic deprivation that lie at the heart of this upsurge of violence.

-- South China Morning Post, Hong Kong