Afghan Security Concerns Rise With Strife, Poll Finds The New York Times By KIRK SEMPLE Published: October 23, 2007 KABUL, Afghanistan Oct. 22 In a 12-month period during which the Taliban insurgency spread in Afghanistan and violence rose in the countrys major cities, Afghans grew increasingly concerned about security and more people came to regard it as the most serious issue facing the nation, according to the results of a poll set for release on Tuesday. About a third of the polls respondents said security issues, including terrorism and violence, were the single biggest problem in Afghanistan, a significant increase from a similar poll last year, in which only 22 percent gave top priority to security concerns. Insecurity is the main reason for the people to believe that the country is headed in the wrong direction, the authors of the poll wrote. In the eyes of men and women of Afghanistan, the security situation in the country has deteriorated. But the survey, financed by the United States, found that, over all, Afghans have about the same view of their countrys path as they did last year. Forty-two percent of respondents said the country was moving in the right direction, compared with 44 percent last year, according to the Asia Foundation, a nonprofit organization based in San Francisco, which conducted both surveys. With a margin of sampling error of plus or minus two percentage points, the change is not considered significant. Twenty-four percent said the country was headed in the wrong direction this year, compared with 21 percent in 2006. The poll was financed by the United States Agency for International Development and conducted by a team of Afghans, who interviewed more than 6,200 people in June in rural and urban areas in all of Afghanistans provinces. The main goal was to gauge public sentiments on social and political issues, in a country that is undergoing rapid changes, the authors said. In addition to security issues, respondents listed unemployment, the poor economy and corruption as major concerns. A majority of those interviewed 57 percent said national corruption had worsened in the past year, but fewer than half said it had worsened at the provincial and local levels. Nevertheless, 60 percent said corruption remained a major problem at the provincial level. The poll said development-related issues remained the biggest local problems, with respondents citing, in order of importance, electricity, unemployment, water, education and roads. The only exception to those priorities was in the southwestern provinces, where the Taliban insurgency has been most active and security was regarded as the biggest local problem. Of those who said Afghanistan was headed in the right direction, 39 percent said reconstruction was the biggest factor and 34 percent cited good security. About 25 percent of those surveyed said the government was doing a very good job and 55 percent said it was doing a somewhat good job. The survey also found evidence to suggest that the ideas of political tolerance and freedom of expression were not yet firmly rooted in Afghan society. A large proportion of respondents said Afghans did not feel free to express their political opinions in the area where they live, and 69 percent agreed it was not acceptable to speak critically about the government in public. The survey showed confidence in some national institutions, including the security forces, the news media, tribal and provincial councils, aid groups and some government entities. But fewer than half of the respondents expressed confidence in the governments justice system, political parties and local militias. The poll showed mixed feelings about the empowerment of women. About 53 percent of the respondents said they strongly agreed that women should have equal rights, while 32 percent somewhat agreed. A majority of men and women agreed that women should be allowed to work outside the home, but a majority of men and women also agreed that women should wear a burqa in public. Respondents expressed respect for religion. About 66 percent said they believed democracy could be Islamic, while 29 percent said democracy challenged Islamic values. Afghanistan residents believe security is deteriorating: U.S. survey By The Associated Press 23/10/2007 KABUL, Afghanistan Afghans believe the security situation in their country has deteriorated, compared with last year, but they say life is better now than under Taliban rule, a U.S.-funded survey released Tuesday found. About 46 % of more than 6,200 adults surveyed countrywide feel security is the biggest problem afflicting the country, while 29 % think it is unemployment, according to the survey, which was conducted by the Asia Foundation and paid for by the U.S. Agency for International Development. In the 2006 survey, it was unemployment first, followed by security and corruption, and this time around it is security first followed by unemployment and poor economy. This further underlines the deterioration in security in the eyes of the common Afghans, the survey said. Despite the rise in violence, about four in 10 of those responding said they feel the country is headed in the right direction. Thats roughly the same as those who answered the 2006 survey. Half of those surveyed said they were more prosperous today than during Taliban rule in the late 1990s. Afghanistan is experiencing its worst bout of violence since the Taliban were removed from power in a U.S.-led invasion in 2001. More than 5,200 people mostly militants have died in insurgency-related violence so far this year, according to an Associated Press count based on figures from Afghan and Western officials. Insecurity is the main reason for the people to believe that the country is headed in the wrong direction, the survey said. While lack of security was the top-ranked national issue, those surveyed identified a lack of electricity and water, and unemployment as the main problems on a local level, the survey found. The foundation said the survey was conducted in all 34 provinces and was the largest comprehensive opinion poll ever conducted in Afghanistan. Some 6,263 people 18 and older were interviewed in person by a team of 494 trained interviewers between June 11 and June 22. The margin of error was 2.4 percentage points, it said. Almost half of the people of Afghanistan think that their families are more prosperous today than they were during the Taliban regime, the survey found. However, more than a fourth think they are less prosperous today. More than 80 % of the respondents said they have confidence in the Afghanistans National Army and the countrys troublesome police force, while more than half said they do not trust the formal justice system and would rather rely on traditional forms of justice decisions by local councils to settle their disputes. About eight in 10 felt that cultivation of opium poppies was wrong, with half of these respondents citing religion as the reason, but only about one in 10 linked the trade to terrorism, insecurity and corruption in the country, it said. Afghanistan accounts for more than 93 % of the worlds supply of opium, the main ingredient in heroin, a lucrative trade whose proceeds in part fund some of the Taliban-led insurgency. The drug trade also has a corrupting influence on local government officials. Many in Afghanistan optimistic Reuters Africa Tue 23 Oct 2007 SINGAPORE (Reuters) Many Afghans are optimistic about the direction the war-torn country is taking, but have mixed feelings about their government, a survey released on Tuesday found. Forty-two percent of those interviewed this year said things were moving in the right direction, marginally lower than the 44 percent in 2006, the U.S.-based Asia Foundation said. That compared to 24 percent who saw Afghanistan moving in the wrong direction, an increase from 21 percent the previous year. It was the Foundation's third such poll since 2004 and involved more than 6,000 interviews with Afghan men and women across the country. While 80 percent thought the government was doing a good job, 79 percent said it did not care what people thought and 69 percent that talking negatively about the government in public was unacceptable. Corruption was seen as a major problem throughout government, although: "Perception of the prevalence of corruption was higher at the national level", where 74 percent saw widespread corruption against 48 percent for the local level. The Foundation, a non-profit private organisation, said it designed and directed the survey, although funding came from a U.S. government aid agency grant. Of those surveyed who thought the country was moving in the wrong direction, 48 percent cited insecurity as the main reason. A Taliban-led insurgency backed by al Qaeda has intensified in Afghanistan in the past two years, with this year one of the most violent since 2001 when the Taliban lost control of the government in fighting with other Afghan and U.S.-led forces. Still, two-thirds of those polled thought security in their own areas was good or quite good. While the government and its foreign allies have scored some major conventional successes this year, the Taliban have increasingly turned to such tactics as suicide bombs and roadside explosives, with much of that activity occurring since field work for the survey was conducted in June. Government and allied forces have meanwhile been criticised for inflicting civilian casualties, especially in aircraft bombing raids. Corruption in government worries Afghans Ninemsn Tuesday Oct 23 Many Afghans are optimistic about the direction the war-torn country is taking, but have mixed feelings about their government, a new survey shows. Forty-two per cent of those interviewed this year said things were moving in the right direction, marginally lower than the 44 per cent in 2006, the US-based Asia Foundation said. That compared to 24 per cent who saw Afghanistan moving in the wrong direction, an increase from 21 per cent the previous year. It was the Foundation's third such poll since 2004 and involved more than 6,000 interviews with Afghan men and women across the country. While 80 per cent thought the government was doing a good job, 79 per cent said it did not care what people thought and 69 per cent said that talking negatively about the government in public was unacceptable. Corruption was seen as a major problem throughout government, although: "Perception of the prevalence of corruption was higher at the national level", where 74 per cent saw widespread corruption against 48 per cent for the local level. The Foundation, a non-profit private organisation, said it designed and directed the survey, although funding came from a US government aid agency grant. Of those surveyed who thought the country was moving in the wrong direction, 48 per cent cited insecurity as the main reason. A Taliban-led insurgency backed by al-Qaeda has intensified in Afghanistan in the past two years, with this year one of the most violent since 2001 when the Taliban lost control of the government in fighting with other Afghan and US-led forces. Still, two-thirds of those polled thought security in their own areas was good or quite good. While the government and its foreign allies have scored some major conventional successes this year, the Taliban have increasingly turned to such tactics as suicide bombs and roadside explosives, with much of that activity occurring since field work for the survey was conducted in June. Government and allied forces have meanwhile been criticised for inflicting civilian casualties, especially in aircraft bombing raids.
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