Over one-third of Bulgarians expect growth in protests for economic reasons

Some 37% of adult Bulgarians expect growth in protests and industrial disputes in the country this year, compared to 2011. The data is from the worldwide Annual End of the Year Survey of Gallup International Association. The latest poll was conducted in the October - December 2011 period among more than 52,000 men and women in 58 countries worldwide.

Last year, Time magazine named The Protester its 2011 Person of the Year. 2011 was filled with demonstrations around the world - from the riots in the Arab world to the rallies in Russia and Greece and the Occupy Wall Street protest movement. However, instead of a calmer situation, 55% of the respondents around the world expect even more mass-scale demonstrations in 2012. Only 13% of the respondents in 58 countries worldwide share forecasts for a decrease in unrest and industrial disputes. A quarter of the surveyed expect protests and social unrest to be of the same intensity as last year.

The most turbulent regions in 2012 will be Northern Asia and Western Europe, according to the respondents. Some 62% of the polled people in Northern Asia and 57% of West Europeans expect growth in protests and industrial disputes over the next 12 months.

The region where the largest share of the population expects an easing of public tension is the region of Afghanistan and Iraq - the Arab world. One-third of the residents of Arab countries expect less economic protests and industrial disputes in 2012.

Bulgaria ranks 41st among the 58 countries surveyed in terms of the degree of concern about protests and disputes for economic reasons. Some 37% of Bulgarian citizens believe that, in 2012, we will have greater public discontent in Bulgaria in the form of protests, rallies, strikes and industrial disputes. Some 31% of the polled Bulgarians do not expect this year to differ very much from 2011 in this respect. Only 8% of Bulgarians expect protests to calm down in 2012.

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