Democracy survey reveals crisis of confidence in democratic institutions
13 May 2014, 6:26 PM
Zaheena Rasheed
The Maldives’ first survey on public attitudes towards democracy reveals a deep crisis of public confidence in key democratic institutions, local advocacy group Transparency Maldives has said.
Of a 1000 randomly selected individuals, 62 percent said they have no confidence in parliament, while 58 percent said they have no confidence in political parties. Respondents who reported no confidence in the local government and courts stand at 50 percent and 46 percent respectively
The ‘Democracy at Crossroads’ survey also revealed extraordinarily high levels of cynicism, with 92 percent stating they believe politicians lie to get elected and 86 percent saying the government does not care about ordinary people.
Cynicism has “corrosive effects on democratic life,” the report said, claiming it drives citizens away from active participation in the public sphere which in turn increases impunity and corruption.
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