IRAQ – WHERE THINGS STAND EMBARGOED for RELEASE AFTER 6:30 P.M., Monday, March 15, 2004
ABC NEWS POLL: IRAQ – WHERE THINGS STAND EMBARGOED FOR RELEASE AFTER 6:30 P.M., Monday, March 15, 2004 While Ambivalent About the War, Most Iraqis Report a Better Life A year after the bombs began to fall, Iraqis express ambivalence about the U.S.-led invasion of their country, but not about its effect: Most say their lives are going well and have improved since before the war, and expectations for the future are very high. Worries exist – locally about joblessness, nationally about security – boosting desire for a “single strong leader,” at least in the short-term. Yet the first media-sponsored national public opinion poll in Iraq also finds a strikingly optimistic people, expressing growing interest in politics, broad rejection of political violence, rising trust in the Iraqi police and army and preference for an inclusive and ultimately a democratic government. More Iraqis say the United States was right than say it was wrong to lead the invasion, but by just 48 to 39 percent, with 13 percent expressing no opinion – hardly the unreserved welcome some U.S. policymakers had anticipated. 60% Iraqis' Views of the U.S.-Led Invasion ABC News poll 50% 48% 42% 41% 40% 39% 30% 20% 10% 0% Was right Was wrong Liberated Iraq Humiliated Iraq As many Iraqis say the war “humiliated” Iraq as say it “liberated” the country; more oppose than support the presence of coalition forces there now (although most also say they should stay for the time being); and relatively few express confidence in those forces, in the U.S.-led Coalition Provisional Authority, or in the Iraqi Governing Council.
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