Afghan public increasingly pessimistic
Sunday, 28 October 2007
Jon Boone from Kabul
THE Afghan public has become more pessimistic about the future of their country after a year of rising insecurity and Taliban violence, Afghanistan's largest-ever opinion poll has found.
Just 42 per cent of the 6,263 adults questioned nationwide said the country was moving in the right direction and almost one-quarter felt the situation was deteriorating, according to research by the Asia Foundation, a US-based development group.
When the poll was conducted last year, the proportion of Afghans who believed the country was "moving in the right direction" was two percentage points higher, at 44 per cent.
Twenty-one per cent quizzed last year said the country was moving in the wrong direction, compared to 24 per cent this year.
The country's increasingly bloody insurgency was the main reason for increased public pessimism, the group said in its report, Afghanistan in 2007.
The share of people citing insecurity as the main problem for the country soared to 48 per cent this year, compared to just 6.0 per cent in 2006.
Afghanistan is experiencing its worst bout of violence since the Taliban were removed from power in a US-led invasion in 2001. One estimate puts the death toll among Afghans, both combatants and civilians, so far this year at 5,200.
People in the south and east of the country, where the Taliban revival is concentrated, were most likely to tell pollsters that insecurity was their biggest concern.
Across all regions, 16 per cent said that they had been direct victims of crime or violence.
"What becomes apparent from the public's responses is that their experience with violence or crime, more often than not, is related to petty crimes rather than serious security lapses," the report said.
Over half of respondents said they don't trust the formal justice system and would rather rely on traditional forms of justice - decisions by local councils -- to settle their disputes.
The survey also confirmed the steady disillusionment of many Afghans since the heady days 2001.
Remarkably, a growing proportion of Afghans say they were better off under the Taliban, despite the country's strong economic growth in the last six years.
The share of people who said their families are richer today than under the Taliban stands at 49 per cent this year, compared to 54 per cent in 2006. The proportion of people who said they were better off under the Taliban was at 28 per cent, two percentage points above last year's finding.
George Varughese, the Asia Foundation's representative in Afghanistan, said that although the "clear trend was down," the mood of the country overall remained optimistic.
Despite the country's many problems, 80 per cent said the government was doing a good job, particularly on improving education and health systems, although dissatisfaction remains over the government's record of creating jobs and fighting corruption.
Public opposition to the drug trade, which underpins the country's security problems, also remains high with 80 per cent saying poppy cultivation is wrong.
Under syndication
arrangement with FE
THE Afghan public has become more pessimistic about the future of their country after a year of rising insecurity and Taliban violence, Afghanistan's largest-ever opinion poll has found.
Just 42 per cent of the 6,263 adults questioned nationwide said the country was moving in the right direction and almost one-quarter felt the situation was deteriorating, according to research by the Asia Foundation, a US-based development group.
When the poll was conducted last year, the proportion of Afghans who believed the country was "moving in the right direction" was two percentage points higher, at 44 per cent.
Twenty-one per cent quizzed last year said the country was moving in the wrong direction, compared to 24 per cent this year.
The country's increasingly bloody insurgency was the main reason for increased public pessimism, the group said in its report, Afghanistan in 2007.
The share of people citing insecurity as the main problem for the country soared to 48 per cent this year, compared to just 6.0 per cent in 2006.
Afghanistan is experiencing its worst bout of violence since the Taliban were removed from power in a US-led invasion in 2001. One estimate puts the death toll among Afghans, both combatants and civilians, so far this year at 5,200.
People in the south and east of the country, where the Taliban revival is concentrated, were most likely to tell pollsters that insecurity was their biggest concern.
Across all regions, 16 per cent said that they had been direct victims of crime or violence.
"What becomes apparent from the public's responses is that their experience with violence or crime, more often than not, is related to petty crimes rather than serious security lapses," the report said.
Over half of respondents said they don't trust the formal justice system and would rather rely on traditional forms of justice - decisions by local councils -- to settle their disputes.
The survey also confirmed the steady disillusionment of many Afghans since the heady days 2001.
Remarkably, a growing proportion of Afghans say they were better off under the Taliban, despite the country's strong economic growth in the last six years.
The share of people who said their families are richer today than under the Taliban stands at 49 per cent this year, compared to 54 per cent in 2006. The proportion of people who said they were better off under the Taliban was at 28 per cent, two percentage points above last year's finding.
George Varughese, the Asia Foundation's representative in Afghanistan, said that although the "clear trend was down," the mood of the country overall remained optimistic.
Despite the country's many problems, 80 per cent said the government was doing a good job, particularly on improving education and health systems, although dissatisfaction remains over the government's record of creating jobs and fighting corruption.
Public opposition to the drug trade, which underpins the country's security problems, also remains high with 80 per cent saying poppy cultivation is wrong.
Under syndication
arrangement with FE