Only one-third of Czechs over 40 approve of the Velvet Revolution, says new poll

Prague, Oct 22 (CTK) – Only 36 percent of Czechs over 40 give a clearly positive opinion of the Velvet Revolution which toppled the Communist regime in 1989, according to a poll conducted by the NMS Market Research for the Memory of Nations in August and released today.

The views of the event and the time before 1989 differ according to age and education.

Older people and those with lower education tend to view the Communist regime more positively than the rest, while the young generation is often for the ban of the Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia (KSCM).

Out of those over 40, the Velvet Revolution is seen positively by 57 percent of those with higher education, but only by 22 percent of those with elementary education or vocational training.

Over one-fourth of the Czechs over 40 said the Velvet Revolution did not influence their lives, while roughly one-sixth believe that their life turned to the worse. The view is more often held by the people with lower education (24 percent) than by those with secondary education (13 percent) and higher education (9 percent).

Over one-third of Czechs over 40 believe that they were better off. In the group of those with elementary education or vocational training the answer was given by one-half. A similar view is held by 31 percent of those with secondary education, but only by one-sixth of those with higher education.

The people holding these views cited as the reasons that everyone could or had to work, there was a better welfare system and human relationships were better than now.

Almost three-fifths of all the respondents said the Czech Republic’s economic situation is now better than before.

One-half of Czechs said their living standards had improved after the Velvet Revolution. Some 38 percent said now the Czech Republic had the legislation and independent judiciary compared with those of the Western countries.

One-third of Czechs said the media is independent in the Czech Republic.

Czechs are split about evenly over the ban of the KSCM, with two-fifths being for and another two-fifths against the idea.

One-half of those under 40 is for the ban, but only one-third of those over 40.

The ban is approved by 49 percent of the people with higher education, 44 percent of those with secondary education and 37 percent of those with elementary education or vocational training.

Three-fifths of Czechs were able to say when the Velvet Revolution occurred, while almost one-quarter did not know.

Three-fifths of them said Vaclav Havel was its main figure.

The poll was conducted on a sample of 1,000 respondents in early August.

pvr/dr/kva