Between November 5-11, 2017, PACE conducted a survey to assess citizen’s opinions on their democratic aspirations, with 2,808 interviews nationwide. The respondents were selected using proven statistical methodologies, and interviews were conducted by 343 well-trained enumerators in 254 townships. The main purpose of this survey is to inform stakeholders who are involved in policy making and implementing projects to promote Myanmar’s political transition process with the gaps, barriers and citizen’s aspirations for their country, with the ultimate goal to help ensure that citizen needs are met.
Even though there were no significant changes in the political institutions established by the 2008 constitution, the 2015 general elections were an important turning point in Myanmar’s political transition. The National League for Democracy (NLD), whose victory in the 1990 elections was ignored by the military, in 2015 won 79 percent of the seats in the national Parliament and formed the first democratically-elected government. However, several major challenges remain for the government and the country: constitutional reform to meet democratic standards and the political aspirations of all ethnic peoples; reforming the political institutions inherited from the previous government; improving the record on human rights, rule of law, peace and armed conflict; ethnic minority issues; religious intolerance and racism; and economic development and infrastructure development.
Democracy in Myanmar
Building strong political institutions and promoting citizens’ awareness of democracy and its fundamental principles is a key aspect of political reform in a transitional country like Myanmar. By 2020, it will be one decade since Myanmar ended its three-decade long military rule and launched its political transition process. At this milestone, PACE conducted this survey to assess the level of democratic awareness, interest and participation of citizens.
Characteristics of democracy
When PACE’s enumerators asked citizens to identify the most important characteristics of democracy, over half of respondents (57%) indicated that they did not know. The most mentioned characteristics were: peace (17%), which is currently one of the government’s priority issues; freedoms of expression, association and movement (11%); and good governance (7%), such as rule of law, justice and safety. There was no difference between men and women respondents in terms of the characteristics of democracy, but women (67%) were more likely to respond that they did not know than male respondents. While there was no difference between respondents with no high school and with high school or higher when it comes to the characteristics of democracy, respondents with no high school (61%) were more likely to say that they don’t know.
Level of democracy under USDP and NLD
It has been two and a half years since the NLD took office. To understand how much citizens perceive that democracy has improved – or not – under the current government compared to that of the USDP, PACE asked respondents two questions. When PACE’s enumerators asked respondents to rate the level of democracy under the USDP government from “1” to “10” (“1” is not democracy at all and “10” is full democracy), 15% responded “1” (not a democracy at all) and 4% indicated that it was a full democracy. When PACE’s enumerators asked the perceived level of democracy under the NLD government, 3% of respondents rated it as not a democracy at all and 8% rated it as a full democracy. When it comes to respondents from regions and states, respondents who voted for NLD, USDP and other party in 2015, and respondents with no high school and with high school or higher, there was no difference in how they rated the level of democracy under the current government.
Importance of a full democracy
When PACE’s enumerators asked how important it is for Myanmar to become a full democracy, more than half of respondents (60%) responded that it is important (43% responded very important, 17% responded somewhat important). Respondents from urban areas (65%) were more likely to indicate that it is more important than respondents from rural areas (57%). Respondents from regions (62%) were more likely to respond important than respondents from states (55%). Male respondents (65%) were more likely to say important than female respondents (55%). Respondents with high school or higher (73%) were more likely to say important than respondents with no high school (58%).
Actions to become a full democracy
When PACE’s enumerators asked what the country could do to become a full democracy, 36% of respondents answered peace, 23% said education, 22% economic development, 13% constitutional reform and 25% responded “don’t know”.
When PACE’s enumerators asked respondents what actions they could take as citizens to help Myanmar to become a full democracy, 46% responded voting in elections, 22% answered participation in civic activities and one fourth (26%) said “don’t know”.
Democracy and citizens’ daily life
To understand citizen’s perception of how their daily lives will be impacted if Myanmar becomes a full democracy, PACE’s enumerators asked a battery of questions on whether they expect specific aspects of their daily lives to get worse, stay the same or get better as Myanmar goes further down the road to democracy. These areas included personal safety, access to education, basic healthcare and justice, freedom to express their views, family economy and discrimination based on religion or gender.
Over half of respondents (59%) responded that their personal safety will get better. Respondents from regions (61%) were more likely to say “will get better” than respondents from states (50%). Male respondents (63%) were more likely to answer “will get better” than female respondents (55%). Respondents from urban areas (15%) were more likely to answer “will get worse” than those from rural areas (8%) .
When PACE’s enumerators asked the impact of a fully democratic Myanmar on access to education, a large majority of respondents (75%) said that it will get better. Respondents from regions (77%) were more likely to answer “will get better” than respondents from states (67%). Male respondents (78%) were slightly more likely than female respondents (72%) to state “will get better”. There was no difference between respondents from urban and rural areas.
A large majority of respondents (75%) said that access to basic health care will get better as Myanmar becomes a full democracy. Respondents from regions (76%) were more likely to say “will get better” than respondents from states (63%). However, there was no difference between urban and rural respondents, or between men and women.
When PACE’s enumerators asked how access to justice will be impacted if Myanmar becomes a full democracy, over half of respondents (59%) indicated that access to justice will get better. Respondents from regions (63%) were more likely to say “will get better” than respondents from states (46%). Those from states (25%) were more likely to say “don’t know” than those from regions (16%). While there was no difference between the expectations of urban and rural respondents, respondents from rural areas were more likely to say “don’t know”. When it comes to gender, men (64%) were more likely to say “will get better” than women (55%).
More than half of respondents (65%) indicated that freedom to express their views will get better if Myanmar becomes a full democracy. Respondents from regions (70%) were more likely to answer “get better” than respondents from states (52%). When it comes to urban and rural, respondents from urban areas (71%) were more likely to say “get better” than respondents from rural villages (62%). Men (71%) were more likely to say “get better” than women (60%).
When PACE’s enumerators asked what the impact on their family income would be, about half of respondents (55%) said that their income will get better, and 25% answered that it will stay the same. There is not a statistical difference between respondents from regions and states, from urban and rural areas, or men and women.
When PACE’s enumerators asked how discrimination based on their ethnicity would be impacted if Myanmar became a full democracy, about half of the respondents (54%) said it would get better, 19% said it would stay the same and almost one fourth (21%) said they didn’t know. Respondents from regions (56%) were more likely to say “get better” than respondents from states (45%). Men (58%) were more likely to answer “get better” than women (50%). There was no difference between respondents from urban and rural areas.
When PACE’s enumerators asked how discrimination based on religion would be impacted if Myanmar became a full democracy, about half of respondents (54%) said it would get better, 19% said it would stay the same and 20% indicated that they did not know. Respondents from regions (57%) were more likely to say that it would get better than respondents from states (46%). There was no difference in expectations between respondents from urban and rural areas, but respondents from rural areas (23%) were more likely to respond “don’t know”. In addition, there was no difference in expectations between men and women, but female respondents (25%) were more likely to respond “don’t know” .
About half of respondents (56%) said that discrimination based on gender would get better if Myanmar became a full democracy. However, 19% of respondents said it will stay the same and 21% said don’t know. Respondents from regions (57%) were more likely to think it will get better than respondents from states (48%). There were no statistical differences between respondents from urban and rural areas, or between men and women.
Interest in Politics, Interpersonal Trust, and Civic and Political Engagement
Interest in politics
Interest in politics is an important factor for Myanmar’s democratic transition because it motivates citizens to become informed and involved in politics and government. When PACE’s enumerators asked how much interest they have in politics, 38% of respondents indicated that they were interested (11% very interested and 27% somewhat interested). This level of interest is much lower than the one measured in PACE’s 2016 post-election, when 58% responded being interested. However, it is consistent with the level of interest found by The Asia Foundation in its 2014 survey (37%).
Respondents from urban areas (43%) were more likely to indicate interest in politics than respondents from rural areas (35%). Men (45%) were more likely to say they are interested than women (31%). Respondents with high school or higher (53%) were more likely to indicate interest than those with no high school (34%).
Interpersonal trust
Interpersonal trust and tolerance are fundamental to a democratic society. Especially for a transitional country like Myanmar, with a multi-ethnic and multi-religious society, they are a foundation to find common morals, identity and norms.
Public opinion surveys often measure the level of interpersonal trust to demonstrate the quality of social, economic and political relations among people in a society. PACE asked respondents if they thought that “most people can be trusted” OR if they “need to be very careful in dealing with people.” A vast majority of respondents (77%) indicated that they need to be very careful when dealing with people, and only 18% answered that most people can be trusted. PACE and other organizations have asked the same question in previous surveys; except for a PACE survey from 2016, where 37% responded that most people can be trusted, historically less than one fourth of citizens have indicated that people can be trusted: 21% in a 2014 the Asia Foundation survey, 19% in a 2015 Asia Barometer survey, 17% in a 2017 PACE survey and 18% in the current survey.
Tolerance towards different groups of people
In its 2017 survey, PACE asked a battery of questions to assess the level of tolerance toward people with different religious backgrounds and different political beliefs within the workplace, community or family. In this survey, PACE measured the level of acceptance or tolerance towards different groups of people. When PACE’s enumerators presented respondents with a list of different groups of people and asked which, if any, would be unacceptable as neighbors, 57% of respondents mentioned drug addicts, 28% alcoholics, 26% homosexuals, 20% people with different religions, 15% people with criminal records and 13% people of different ethnicities.
Civic and political engagement
Different factors have been used to measure social capital, such as; groups and networks, trust and solidarity, collective action and cooperation, information and communication, social cohesion and inclusion, empowerment and political action. In this survey, PACE measured the level of citizens’ participation and the nature of the groups and networks with which they have associated over the past year to understand the nature of their associational life, which is related to social capital.
Participation in civic activities
PACE’s enumerators asked respondents if they had participated in civic activities -- such as activities of cultural groups, sport groups, worker associations or social services organizations/associations -- over the past year. More than half (55%) of respondents responded that they had participated in this type of activities. There was no difference in the level of participation of urban and rural respondents, but more respondents from states (61%) indicated that they had participated than respondents from regions (54%). Men (66%) were more likely to have participated in civic activities than women (45%). Citizens were most likely to have participated in activities organized by social services organizations/associations (35%), compared to other types of civic organizations.
When PACE’s enumerators asked respondents if they had participated in activities of cultural groups, almost one fourth of respondents (22%) indicated that they had participated. Respondents from rural areas (26%) were more likely to have participated in those activities than respondents from urban areas (15%). Respondents from states (31%) were more likely to have participated in those activities than those from regions (19%). There was no difference in the reported level of participation of men and women .
Few respondents (16%) indicated that they had participated in activities of sport groups over the past year. While there is no difference between respondents from urban and rural areas, respondents from states (19%) were more likely to have participated in those activities than those from regions (14%). When it comes to gender, men (21%) were more likely to indicate they had participated in those activities than women (10%). When it comes to education level, respondents with high school or higher (24%) were more likely to have participated in activities of sport groups than respondents with no high school (13%).
About a quarter (23%) of respondents indicated that they participated in activities of worker associations over the past year. There was no difference between respondents from urban and rural areas, or from regions and states. When it comes to gender and education level, men (29%) were more likely to have participated than women (17%), and respondents with high school or higher were more likely to report having participated than respondents with no high school.
One third of respondents (35%) indicated that they had participated in activities of social service organizations/associations over the past year. There were no differences between respondents from urban and rural areas, or regions and states. When it comes to gender and education level, men (43%) were more likely to report having participated than women (27%), and respondents with high school or higher were more likely to have participated than those with no high school.
Participation in political activities
PACE’s enumerators asked respondents if they had participated in any of these political activities over the past year: gathering to seek solutions to community problems, meeting with government representatives or members of Parliament (MPs), civic education meetings, signing petitions, participating in protests/demonstrations or taking part in any other political activity. Nearly half of respondents (45%) indicated they had participated in at least one of these activities. Respondents from rural areas (48%) were more likely to indicate that they had participated than those from urban areas (40%). Men (54%) were more likely to indicate that they had participated than women (35%).
When PACE’s enumerators asked if respondents had attended a gathering to seek solutions to community problems over the past year, 31% responded that they had. Respondents from rural areas (35%) were more likely to have attended these gatherings than respondents from urban areas (23%). When it comes to gender, men (40%) were more likely to say that they had participated than women (21%).
When PACE’s enumerators asked respondents if they had participated in meetings with government representatives or MPs over the past year, about one fourth of respondents (23%) answered that they did. While there are no differences between respondents from urban and rural areas or education levels, men (28%) were more likely to indicate that they had participated than women (17%).
When PACE’s enumerators asked about respondents’ level of participation in civic education meetings, 13% indicated that they had attended. While there are no differences between respondents from urban and rural areas, or respondents with different education levels, men’s level of participation in civic education meetings (15%) was slightly higher than women’s (11%).
When PACE’s enumerators asked respondents if they had signed any petitions over the last year, 11% responded that they had. While there were no differences between respondents from urban and rural areas, or respondents with different education levels, men’s level of participation in signing petitions (13%) was slightly higher than women’s (8%).
Only a few respondents (4%) responded that they had participated in a protest or demonstration over the past year. People in urban areas (6%) were slightly more likely to have participated than those in rural areas (3%). There were no differences between respondents with different education level, or between men and women.
Views on Politicians and Government
Views on politicians
PACE’s interviewers asked respondents to what extent they agreed with the statement “politicians are interested in the views of people like me between elections” by using a scale from “1” to “4”, where “1” is completely disagree, 2 is somewhat disagree, 3 is somewhat agree and “4” is completely agree. Nearly half of respondents (49%) responded that they agreed with the statement (somewhat agree or completely agree), and about one third (23%) responded “don’t know”. While there was no difference between respondents with different education level, people from urban areas (54%) were more likely to agree than those from rural areas (47%). Men (54%) were more likely to agree than women (46%).
Nearly half of respondents (46%) indicated that they agreed with the statement “politicians make promises at election time, but they do not fulfill them afterwards” (somewhat agree or completely agree). While men (51%) were slightly more likely to agree than women (42%), there was no difference between respondents from urban and rural areas, or between respondents with different education level.
Views on government
To determine how citizens thought how government should relate to them, PACE’s interviewers asked respondents which of the following statements they would more agree with:
- Government is like a parent; the people should be taken care of like children; or
- Government is like an employee; the people should be the bosses who control the government.
More than half of respondents (66%) indicated that they thought the government is like a parent. Respondents from regions (69%) were more likely to agree with the first statement than those from states (56%). There was no difference between respondents from urban (61%) and rural (67%) areas, but respondents with no high school (68%) were slightly more likely to agree with the first statement than the respondents with high school or higher (61%).
Perceptions of Government Performance
This year marks the half-way point of the NLD government elected in 2015. This milestone provides an opportunity for citizens to reflect on how their lives have been impacted by the policies and actions of the current government. In turn, these citizens’ perceptions could provide valuable insight to government officials as they prepare for their next two and a half years in office.
Towards this goal, PACE probed citizens’ opinions on the state of politics, the economy, peace and conflict, and development under the current government compared with the previous USDP-led government.
Political and citizen’s rights
PACE’s enumerators asked citizens how they would measure the level of political and civil rights under the current government compared to the previous one, using a scale from “1” to “5” where “1” is got much worse, “2” got somewhat worse, “3” is stay the same, “4” is got somewhat better, “5” is got much better.
When PACE’s enumerators asked the respondents to rate the level of freedom to say anything in public, including criticisms of the government, about half of respondents (52%) responded that it got better compared with the previous government. Respondents from regions (56%) were more likely to say that this freedom got better than respondents from states (40%). Men (59%) were more likely to respond “got better” than women (46%). There was no difference between respondents with different education levels.
Nearly half of respondents (46%) responded that the level of freedom to post anything on social media, including criticisms of the government, got better compared with the previous government. Respondents from states (35%) were less likely to say “got better” than respondents from regions (50%). There was no difference between respondents with different education levels.
When PACE’s enumerators asked citizens to rate the level of freedom of the media to investigate and publish information, 46% of respondents said it got better compared with the previous government. While respondents from regions (51%) were more likely to say “got better” than respondents from states (35%), there was no difference between respondents with different education levels.
When PACE’s enumerators asked citizens to rate the level of freedom to protest under this government, nearly half of respondents (45%) said it got better than the situation under the previous government. Respondents from states (31%) were less likely to say “got better” than those from regions (51%). Respondents with high school or higher (54%) were more likely to say “got better” than respondents with no high school (44%).
When PACE’s enumerators asked citizens to rate the level of freedom to form citizens’ groups under this government, about half of respondents (54%) said it got better compared to the situation under the previous government. Respondents from regions (57%) were more likely to say “got better” than those from states (45%). More respondents with high school or higher (63%) answered “got better” than respondents with no high school (53%).
Half of respondents (51%) said that the level of civil society’s freedom to monitor government processes under this government got better compared with the previous government. Respondents from regions (56%) were more likely to say “got better” than those from states (36%). Respondents with high school or higher (59%) were more likely to say “got better” than those with no high school (50%).
Peace and conflict
When PACE’s enumerators asked the respondents to compare the state of the ongoing peace process under the current government compared to the previous government, less than half of respondents (42%) responded that it got better, 17% said that got worse and 20% said that it stayed the same. While respondents from regions (46%) were more likely to say “got better” than respondents from states (30%), there was no difference between respondents with different education levels.
Regarding the situation of religious and ethnic tensions, one third of respondents (33%) said it got better compared to the situation under the previous government, 13% said it got worse and 22% said it stayed the same. Respondents from regions (36%) were more likely to say “got better” than those from states (25%).
When PACE’s enumerators asked the respondents the state of armed conflict in ethnic areas under the current government compared with the previous government, one fourth of respondents (28%) responded that it got worse, 21% that it stayed the same, 27% answered that got better and 24% responded “don’t know.” Respondents from regions (29%) were more likely to say “got better” than respondents from states (20%). There was no different between the respondents with different education levels.
Economy
PACE’s enumerators asked respondents to compare the situation of running a business under this government and under the previous government. Less than half of respondents (43%) answered “got better”, 20% said “got worse” and 26% responded “stayed the same”. More respondents from regions (46%) indicated “got better” than from states (34%). There were no differences between respondents from urban and rural areas, men and women, or respondents with different education levels.
When PACE’s enumerators asked about the situation of their family income under this government compared with the previous government, one third of respondents (34%) said “stayed the same”, 39% said “got better” and 19% said “got worse”. Respondents from regions (42%) were more likely to respond “got better” than those from states (31%), but there were no differences between respondents from urban and rural areas, or men and women.
When comparing the situation of land grabs under the previous government and the current government, about half of respondents (46%) indicated that the situation got better, 19% responded “stayed the same”, 10% “got worse” and 25% answered “don’t know”. Respondents from regions (49%) were more likely to answer “got better” than the respondents from the states (36%). There were no differences between respondents from urban and rural areas, or men and women.
Around half of respondents (56%) indicated that the affordability of goods and services under the current government got better compared with the previous government, and 19% responded that it stayed the same. Respondents from regions (61%) were more likely to respond “got better” than those from states (46%). While there was no difference between respondents from urban and rural areas, more men (61%) responded “got better” than women (53%).
Half of respondents (51%) indicated that job opportunities under this government got better when compared with the previous government. Respondents from regions (55%%) were more likely to answer “got better” than those from states (38%). There were no differences between respondents from urban and rural areas, or men and women.
About a third (30%) of respondents said the gap between rich and poor under this government got better compared to the situation under the previous government, while 20% indicated that it stayed the same. Respondents from rural areas (33%) were more likely to answer “got better” than those from urban areas (23%). More respondents from regions (33%) indicated “got better” than those from states (22%). There was no difference between men and women.
Urban and rural development
When PACE’s enumerators asked respondents about the situation of roads and bridges under this government compared to the previous government, a majority (71%) answered “got better” and 17% answered “stayed the same”. There were no differences between respondents from urban and rural areas, or regions and states.
More than half of respondents (60%) said that the level of access to electricity under this government got better compared with the previous government; 16% said it stayed the same. Respondents from urban areas (77%) were more likely to answer “got better” than those from rural areas (51%). More respondents from regions (63%) indicated that access to electricity got better than from states (52%).
More than two-thirds of respondents (69%) said that school buildings and facilities got better under this government compared to the previous government, while 15% responded “stayed the same”. Respondents from regions (72%) were more likely to say “got better” than the respondents from states (63%). However, there was no difference between respondents from urban and rural areas.
Two thirds (65%) of respondents said that the healthcare services in public hospitals/clinics got better under this government compared with the previous government, while 18% said “stayed the same”. Respondents from urban areas (70%) were more likely to say “got better” than respondents from rural areas (62%). There was a significant difference between respondents from regions (68%) and from states (54%) responding “got better”.
Regarding the access to government services such as IDs, household registration, etc., half of respondents (53%) said it got better under this government compared to the previous government, while 23% said it stayed the same and 13% said it got worse. Respondents from regions (57%) were more likely to say “got better” than those from states (42%). There was no difference between respondents from urban and rural areas.
Two thirds (67%) of respondents said communication services such as post, mobile, internet, etc., under this government got better compared to the previous government, while 14% said “stayed the same”. Respondents from urban areas (73%) were more likely to say “got better” than those from rural areas (65%). Respondents from regions (71%) were more likely to answer “got better” than respondents from states (57%).
A majority (60%) of respondents said that access to clean water under this government got better compared to the previous government, while 24% said “stayed the same”. Respondents from urban areas (63%) were more likely to say “got better” than those from rural areas (58%). Respondents from regions (66%) were more likely to answer “got better” than respondents from states (43%).
Half of respondents (51%) answered “got better” when PACE’s enumerators asked respondents how they would rate the situation of community drainage and sewage under this government compared with the previous. One fourth (25%) said “stayed the same”, and 13% said “got worse”. Respondents from regions (57%) were more likely to say “got better” than respondents from states (35%), and there was no difference between respondents from urban and rural areas.
Security and safety
When PACE’s enumerators asked respondents the situation of personal safety under this government compared with the previous government, 46% of respondents answered “got better”, 20% said “got worse” and 25% said “stayed the same”. Respondents from rural areas (50%) were more likely to say “got better” than respondents from urban areas (36%). Respondents from regions (49%) were more likely to say “got better” than those from states (35%). There was no difference between men and women.
A quarter (27%) of respondents said the level of child protection under this government got worse compared with the previous government, while 44% said “got better” and 20% said “stayed the same”. Respondents from rural areas (49%) were more likely to say “got better” than those from urban areas (32%). Respondents from regions (46%) were more likely to say “got better” than respondents from states (35%). There was no difference between men and women.
When PACE’s enumerators asked about women’s safety, 28% of respondents said that it got worse compared with the previous government, 21% said “stayed the same” and 42% said “got better”. Respondents from rural areas (47%) were more likely to say “got better” those from urban areas (29%). Respondents from regions (43%) were more likely to say “got better” than respondents from states (33%). There was no difference between men and women.
Political reform
When PACE’s enumerators asked the respondents to compare the rule of law under this government with the situation under the previous government, 40% said it got better, while 26% said it stayed the same. Respondents from regions (46%) were more likely to say “got better” than those from states (27%). Men (45%) were more likely to answer “got better” than women (37%).
Nearly half of respondents (48%) said that the inclusivity of the political process under this government got better compared with the previous government, and 19% said “stayed the same”. Respondents from regions (53%) were more likely to answer “got better” than respondents from states (36%). Men (55%) were more likely to say “got better” than women (43%). There was no difference between respondents from urban and rural areas.
Less than half of respondents (40%) said that the efforts to reform the constitution got better under this government compared with the previous government, but 20% said “stayed the same”. While 46% of respondents from regions said “got better”, 27% of respondents from states indicated “got better”. Men (47%) were more likely to say “got better” than women (35%). There was no difference between respondents from urban and rural areas.
When PACE’s enumerators asked the respondents if the measures taken by the government to give more power to lower level authorities under this government got better, stayed the same or got worse compared with the previous government, one third of respondents (34%) said “got better, 20% said “stayed the same” and 37% said “don’t know”. Respondents from regions (39%) were more likely to say “got better” than the respondents from states (22%). Men (40%) were more likely to say “got better” than women. There was no difference between respondents from urban and rural areas.
Expectations of Political Reform
Even though Myanmar underwent a peaceful and smooth transfer of power after the 2015 general elections, the country still has the challenge to reform the current political framework, based on the 2008 constitution, to be democratic and accommodate the political aspirations of all ethnic groups. At the halfway point of the NLD government, PACE interviewed citizens to assess their opinions on some of the political reforms taken by the current administration.
Appointment of chief ministers of regions and states
PACE’s enumerators asked respondents whether chief ministers should be appointed by the president, selected by the region/state parliament, or directly elected by citizens. Half of respondents (52%) responded that chief ministers should be elected by citizens, 11% answered that they should be appointed by the president, and 11% said that they should be selected by the region/state parliaments. One fourth of citizens (26%) answered, “don’t know”.
Power sharing between region/state governments and the Union government
When PACE’s enumerators asked respondents their opinion on the power sharing between region/state governments and the Union government, 27% said that region/state governments should have more power than now, 21% said that the current division of power should remain the same, and 11 % said that the Union government should have more power than now. 39% of respondents responded don’t know.
Responsibilities of region/state governments and the Union government
PACE’s enumerators asked who should be responsible for services such as basic education, higher education, basic healthcare services, national defense, recruitment and transfer of civil servants in regions and states, appointing judges in region and state courts, determining natural resources should be managed, and managing money coming from the use of natural resources. The responses are as follows (Table 1):
| State/Regional Government | Union Government | Both | Don't know | |
| Basic Education | 15% | 9% | 56% | 20% |
| Higher education | 8% | 14% | 56% | 22% |
| Healthcare | 13% | 9% | 58% | 19% |
| National Defense | 8% | 12% | 57% | 23% |
| Recruitment/transfer of civil servants | 20% | 11% | 43% | 26% |
| Appointing judges in state/region courts | 14% | 13% | 46% | 27% |
| Determining how to manage natural resources | 13% | 11% | 48% | 28% |
| Managing money coming from natural resources | 13% | 12% | 47% | 28% |
Table 1: Responsibilities of the Union government and region/state governments
Women’s participation in politics
When PACE’s enumerators asked whether men or women currently are more involved in politics by rating on a scale from “1” to “7” (where “1” is mostly men and “7” is mostly women), 20% of respondents said mostly men are currently involved in politics, and 19% said men and women are equally involved. Both male (21%) and female respondents (19%) agreed that mostly men are involved in politics. When asked about who should ideally be more involved in politics, nearly one third of respondents (31%) said that men and women should be involved in politics equally. A lower percentage (18%) said that mostly men should be involved in politics. There was no difference between men and women responding that mostly men should be involved in politics (19% of men, 17% of women), or that men and women should be involved equally (33% of men, 30% of women).
Army (Tatmadaw) involvement in politics
Myanmar’s constitution reserves parliamentary seats for military representatives at both the Union and region/state levels. PACE’s enumerators asked citizens whether they thought military MPs should not be included at all, or if their numbers should decrease, stay the same or increase both in Union level and region/state level hluttaws.
At the Union level, a few respondents (16%) said that military representatives should not be included at all, 15% said that their representation should decrease, 21% said that it should stay the same, and 14% said that the number of military MPs should increase. People in rural areas (16%) were more likely to prefer an increased number of military MPs than people in urban areas (10%). People in urban areas were more likely to prefer for military representation to stay the same (25%) or be eliminated (22%), compared to rural respondents (19% stay the same 19, 13% should not be included at all). People in regions were more likely to prefer military representation to stay the same (23%) or increase (16%), compared to people in states (18% stay the same, 8% increase). People in states (19%) were slightly more likely to prefer a reduced number of military MPs compared to people in regions (14%).
Less than a quarter (17%) of respondents said that military representatives should not be included at all in region/state hluttaws, 14% said their number should decrease, 22% said their representation should stay the same, and 13% said that the number of military MPs should increase.
Corruption
In Transparency International’s 2017 Corruption Perception Index (CPI) report, Myanmar ranks 130 out of 180 countries, with a CPI score of “30” where “0” is highly corrupt and “100” is very clean. While this score represents a slight improvement from 2016, and continues a positive trend that started in 2013, Myanmar continues to suffer endemic corruption at all levels of the political and administrative systems. The current government has signaled its willingness to fight corruption by reforming the Anti-Corruption Commission and appointing new commissioners in November 2017. While it is very important to reform the institutional and legal framework to fight corruption, it is necessary also to promote public participation in fighting corruption. In this survey, PACE assessed citizen’s attitudes and opinions on corruption and their willingness to participate in fighting corruption.
Views on corruption
To understand the opinion of respondents on corruption, PACE’s enumerators asked a battery of questions that have been asked in previous regional and international surveys. Respondents were asked to rate their response between “1 to “5”, where “1” is completely disagree, 2 is somewhat disagree, 3 is neither disagree nor agree, 4 is somewhat agree and 5 is completely agree.
When PACE’s enumerators asked respondents to rate how much they agree with the statement “Corruption is harmful to society”, 69% of respondents agreed and 13% disagreed. Respondents from urban areas (80%) were more likely to agree than respondents from rural areas (64%). Respondents from regions (72%) were more likely to agree than respondents from states (58%). Men (73%) were more likely to agree than women (66%). Respondents with high school or higher (84%) were more likely to agree than respondents with no high school (67%).
When PACE’s enumerators asked respondents to rate how much they agree with the statement “Corruption is morally wrong”, 72% agreed and 10% disagreed. Respondents from urban areas (82%) were more likely to agree than those from rural areas (67%). Respondents from regions (76%) were more likely to agree than respondents from states (59%). Men (77%) were more likely to agree than women (68%). Respondents with high school or higher (86%) were more likely to agree than respondents with no high school (70%).
When PACE’s enumerators asked respondents to rate how much they agree with the statement “Most people in Myanmar give bribes”, 60% agreed and 17% disagreed. Respondents from urban areas (72%) were more likely to agree than the respondents from rural areas (55%). Respondents from regions (63%) were more likely to agree than those from states (52%). Men (65%) were more likely to agree than women (56%). Respondents with high school or higher (77%) were more likely to agree than respondents with no high school (57%).
When PACE’s enumerators asked respondents to rate how much they agree with the statement “If I don’t give bribes, then others who do give bribes will get ahead”, 55% agreed and 20% disagreed. Respondents from urban areas (65%) were more likely to agree than those from rural areas (51%). Respondents from regions (59%) were more likely to agree than respondents from states (44%). Men (59%) were slightly more likely to agree than women (52%). Respondents with high school or higher (69%) were more likely to agree than respondents with no high school (53%).
When PACE’s enumerators asked respondents to rate how much they agree with the statement “If I don’t give bribes, then I won’t be able to obtain certain government services”, 48% of respondents agreed and 22% disagreed. Respondents from urban areas (57%) were more likely to agree than those from rural areas (44%). Respondents from regions (53%) were more likely to agree than respondents from states (35%). Men (73%) were more likely to agree than women (66%). Respondents with high school or higher (55%) were more likely to agree than respondents with no high school (48%).
When PACE’s enumerators asked respondents to rate how much they agree with the statement “Corruption is a basic part of Myanmar culture”, 42% agreed and 26% disagree. Respondents from urban areas (52%) were more likely to agree than respondents from rural areas (37%). Respondents from regions (46%) were more likely to agree than those from states (28%). Men (46%) were more likely to agree than women (39%). Respondents with high school or higher (53%) were more likely to agree than respondents with no high school (40%).
When PACE’s enumerators asked respondents to rate how much they agree with the statement “Ordinary people can make a difference in the fight against corruption”, 49% agreed and 16% disagreed. Respondents from urban areas (54%) were more likely to agree than respondents from rural areas (46%). Respondents from regions (54%) were more likely to agree than those from states (33%). Men (54%) were more likely to agree than women (46%). Respondents with high school or higher (58%) were more likely to agree than respondents with no high school (48%).
When PACE’s enumerators asked respondents to rate how much they agree with the statement “There are certain situations where corruption might be justified”, 30% agreed and 37% disagreed. Respondents from regions (54%) were more likely to agree than respondents from states (33%). There were no differences between respondents from urban and rural areas, men and women, or respondents with different education levels.
When PACE’s enumerators asked respondents to rate how much they agree with the statement “People who give bribes are likely to get caught”, half of respondents (51%) agreed and 16% disagreed. Respondents from urban areas (58%) were more likely to agree than the respondents from rural areas (48%). Respondents from regions (56%) were more likely to agree than respondents from states (36%). Respondents with high school or higher (59%) were more likely to agree than respondents with no high school (51%).
When PACE’s enumerators asked respondents to rate how much they agree with the statement “Corruption is a useful tool for solving problems and getting things done”, one third (34%) agreed and 32% disagreed. Respondents from regions (39%) were more likely to agree than respondents from states (24%). There were no differences between respondents from urban and rural areas, men and women, or respondents with different education levels.
Participation in anti-corruption activities
To assess what kind of actions respondents would take to help fight corruption in Myanmar, PACE’s enumerators asked a set of questions that have been asked in previous regional and international surveys.
When PACE’s enumerators asked the respondents if they would sign a petition asking the government to do more to fight corruption, more than half (57%) responded “yes”. Respondents from urban areas (63%) were more likely to say “yes” than respondents from rural areas (54%). Men (64%) were more likely to respond “yes” than women (50%). Respondents with high school or higher (71%) were more likely to answer “yes” than respondents with no high school. There was no difference between youth (18-35 years) and older persons (above 35 years).
When PACE’s enumerators asked respondents if they would take part in a peaceful protest or demonstration against corruption, less than half of respondents (42%) responded “yes”. Men (47%) were more likely to respond “yes” than women (36%). There were no differences between respondents from urban and rural areas, youth and older, or respondents with high school or higher and with no high school.
When PACE’s enumerators asked respondents if they would report an incident of corruption of the government or an NGO, half of respondents (50%) responded “yes”. Men (58%) were more likely to respond “yes” than women (43%). Respondents with high school or higher (60%) were more likely to answer “yes” than respondents with no high school (48%). There were no differences between respondent from urban and rural areas, or youth (18-35 years) and persons over 35.
When PACE’s enumerators asked respondents if they would become an active member of an organization that works to fight corruption, nearly half of respondents (48%) responded “yes”. Men (55%) were more likely to respond “yes” than women (42%). Respondents with high school or higher (58%) were more likely to answer “yes” than respondents with no high school (47%). There were no differences between respondents from urban and rural areas, or youth (18-35 years) and people over 35.
When PACE’s enumerators asked respondents whether they would refuse to give a bribe when asked by a government official, almost half of respondents (48%) responded “yes”. Men (55%) were more likely to respond “yes” than women (52%). Respondents with high school or higher (58%) were more likely to answer “yes” than respondents with no high school (45). There were no differences between respondents from urban and rural areas, or between youth (18-35 years) and those over 35 years.
Level of corruption
PACE’s enumerators asked respondents to compare the level of corruption under the current NLD government and under the previous government led by the USDP. Respondents rated each government from “0” to “10” where “0” is extreme corruption and “10” is no corruption. Less than a quarter (17%) of respondents rated the level of corruption under USDP government as “0” (extreme corruption), while 17% responded “neither” (“5”), and 2% indicated there was no corruption (“10”). Regarding the NLD, a small number (3%) of respondents rated it “0” (extreme corruption), 20% answered “neither” (“5”), and 4% indicated no corruption (“10”).