A poll shows that the number of people who support capitalism and democracy in Eastern European countries has fallen significantly, mainly among nations that were seriously affected by the financial crisis.
The US-based Pew Research Center conducted the survey with more than 140,000 people in 14 countries in former communist Eastern European states and the former Soviet Union. The results were compared with a similar survey conducted in 1991, 2 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall.
The latest poll shows that 82 percent of the respondents in the former East Germany and 79 percent of the people in the Czech Republic support the change to capitalism.
But in Hungary, those who support capitalism fell to 46 percent from 80 percent in the previous survey.
Support in Lithuania and Bulgaria also fell by large margins.
As for the change to democracy, it received an 85 percent approval rating in the former East Germany and 80 percent in the Czech Republic.
But in the Ukraine, support for democracy fell to 30 percent compared to 72 percent in the previous survey. Support for democracy also fell significantly in Bulgaria, Lithuania and Hungary.
The Pew Research Center says that while many people in those countries are still committed to capitalism and democracy, they are becoming increasingly frustrated with the present situation.
2009/11/10 12:01(JST)
(JST: UTC+9hrs.)
http://www.nhk.or.jp/daily/english/10_12.html
Tue Nov 10, 2009 4:34 pm