Polls -- how Salvadorans view the truce
It is one thing to talk about El Salvador's gang truce in blog posts and newspaper articles. It is another thing to live in communities where crime is prevalent. How do the bulk of Salvadorans view the truce?
In polling by the University of Central America during mid-November of 2012, there were high levels of skepticism about the truce. 66.4% of those polled believed that the truce had reduced the level of crime little or not at all. 89.4% of the respondents had little or no trust in the truce.
La Prensa Grafica polling in February 2013 showed that 55.2% of Salvadorans had a negative opinion of the truce while only 29.7% had a positive view. The respondents were about evenly split over whether or not there should be negotiations with the gangs. And 70% said that one could not trust the gangs to fulfill their promises.
When LPG asked people for the reasons for the gang problem, 36.2% blamed the parents and the educational system of the country, while 30.7% focused on economic factors. According to LPG, respondents from the middle and upper classes were more likely to blame the breakdown of families, while persons from the lower classes were more likely to focus on economic forces behind young men joining gangs. Salvadorans are split on whether resolving the gang problem requires more iron fist policies including the death penalty, or whether there should be a focus on job creation and re-insertion of gang members into society.
In short, the people on El Salvador's streets are uncertain about where this process is headed and whether it is even a good thing. Only time will tell.
In polling by the University of Central America during mid-November of 2012, there were high levels of skepticism about the truce. 66.4% of those polled believed that the truce had reduced the level of crime little or not at all. 89.4% of the respondents had little or no trust in the truce.
La Prensa Grafica polling in February 2013 showed that 55.2% of Salvadorans had a negative opinion of the truce while only 29.7% had a positive view. The respondents were about evenly split over whether or not there should be negotiations with the gangs. And 70% said that one could not trust the gangs to fulfill their promises.
When LPG asked people for the reasons for the gang problem, 36.2% blamed the parents and the educational system of the country, while 30.7% focused on economic factors. According to LPG, respondents from the middle and upper classes were more likely to blame the breakdown of families, while persons from the lower classes were more likely to focus on economic forces behind young men joining gangs. Salvadorans are split on whether resolving the gang problem requires more iron fist policies including the death penalty, or whether there should be a focus on job creation and re-insertion of gang members into society.
In short, the people on El Salvador's streets are uncertain about where this process is headed and whether it is even a good thing. Only time will tell.
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