World power survey

A Gallup International poll for the BBC World Service finds that only in Scandinavia and South Africa do the majority believe that they are ruled according to their wishes ('States not run by people's will').

47% world wide think elections in their countries are free and fair. But this average masks sharp differences. The figure is 55% for the US and Canada, up to 82% in countries of the European Union and 24% in West Africa.

The survey also found that only 13% of people trust politicians and only 16% think they should be given more power. More than twice as many (about a third) think writers and academics should have more power.

From the writers and academics I know, including the good ones, I'm not sure this is a good idea!

The survey also finds extreme differences of view in the near east between Israel and Egypt. Israelis have the strongest sense of national identity of any country in the world. Sixty percent say nationality was the most important thing to them, nearly double the global average. In Egypt 2% said nationality was most important to them. (Mid-east extremes in power survey)