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Surveying Palestinian opinions March 2008

A majority of Palestinians believe international donor aid to the PA is contributing to the political paralysis. Palestinians believe Hamas and Israel should negotiate. People have little confidence in political actors.

Press release/summary: English - Norwegian

A majority of Palestinians think Western financial assistance to the Palestinian Authority (PA) is doing more harm than good; two thirds (69 %) of those polled in February and March believe that aid to the PA contributes to widening the rift between Fatah and Hamas. A similar proportion (63 %) thinks that aid to the PA promotes corruption, and the same number believes it has very little to no effect on poverty alleviation. Only a third of those polled felt aid to the PA had a positive impact on services.

At the same time, Palestinians report steadily declining economic situations at home. As might be expected, the socio-economic picture is worst in Gaza. Overall, Fafo’s studies over the last year point to a constant decline in household economies, painting a picture of coping systems being pushed to the limits.

The survey showed a clear preference among Palestinians for direct negotiations between Hamas and Israel, as well as between Hamas and the Fatah-led Palestinian Authority. A clear majority of Palestinians, including many Hamas voters, supports direct negotiations between Hamas and Israel. The support is strongest for Hamas-Israel negotiations on release of prisoners (84 %), but there is also considerable support for negotiations on lifting the siege of Gaza (66 %), for a long-term truce (64 %) and for peace negotiations (54 %).

A large majority of the respondents is of the opinion that Hamas and Fatah should initiate negotiations and reconcile: 60 % believe that they should negotiate without any preconditions. There are no regional differences regarding this question, but a majority of Hamas voters think that negotiations should take place without preconditions, while Fatah’s supporters in general think that it should be conditional. However, people are pessimistic in regard to reconciliation between Fatah and Hamas under present circumstances: 70 % of the respondents fear that the West Bank and Gaza will remain separated for years.

People have little trust in the executive powers and about half of the population are of the opinion that the political leaders perform badly.

Fafo carried out an opinion poll of 4000 adult individuals in the West Bank and Gaza Strip in the period 22 February-4 March. The study entailed face-to-face interviews with persons aged 18 years and older. It gathered information on demography, housing standards, living conditions and attitudes regarding current political affairs, elections, the security situation, and relations with Israel. The poll was funded by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.