Македонски центар за меѓународна соработка - МЦМС

Authors: Saso Klekovski, Aleksandar Krzalovski, Suncica Sazdovska and Gonce Jakovleska
Date: 2008
PDF:   trust-in-the-civil-society-2008.pdf

The Macedonian Center for International Cooperation, for third time, examined the general trust in the civil society. The survey was conducted in October 2008, on a representative sample of 1600 surveyed people.

The research showed that in Macedonia there is relatively low general trust and trust in institutions. The citizens have high trust in those similar to them - trust in family (97.8%) and lower general trust (23.1%) and trust in institutions.

The educational institutions (65.8%), army (64.6%), police (56.6%) and public health organizations (55.1%) have the trust of the majority whereas the public utility enterprise (38.8%) of the minority of citizens.    Further increase of the trust in the Government (and the state) is registered. The trust in the Government has increased from 26.6% in 2006, 44.6% in 2007, to 51% in 2008.

The research showed that the general trust in churches and religious communities is high (65.6%) and stabile – on the same level as in the previous year. The officials within the religious communities have 54% trust.

According to the data, there is increase of distrust and intolerance to various groups. As opposed to the previous year, for all groups, except for alcohol addicts and victims of violence, the results show increased intolerance.

Large majority of surveyed do not like to have as neighbours drug addicts (93.1%), alcohol addicts (85%), people with AIDS (84.7%) and homosexuals (83.1%). The majority of surveyed do not like to have as neighbours victims of violence (58.6%) and Roma people (52.6%) whereas minority of surveyed people do not like to live next to immigrants/foreign workers (36.5%). Small minority from the surveyed sample do not like to have people of different religion from their own as neighbour (30.6%), other ethnicities (30.2%) and unmarried couples living together (28.2%).

The research showed that the general trust in civil society organizations is 41.7%. Majority of citizens believe that the civil society organizations exist for realization of the interests of the citizens as well as providing opportunity for allowing their opinion and action to be presented in public.

Majority of citizens (56.1%) know successful civil society organizations, whereas compared with the previous statement, they have additional knowledge on organizations working in different sectors. The knowledge about civil society organizations has been improved in all examined sectors, in comparison with 2007.  The citizens trust the most: organizations for people with special abilities (65.5%), organization for children, youth and students (65.2%) and organization for women and gender issues (61%).