This week we learned that 62% of the people surveyed in Armenia over February-March 2019 said they had a positive image of the European Union.

92% of the polled believe Armenia has good relations with the EU, which significantly exceeds the average index of the Eastern Partnership in the region (67%). 61% of the surveyed trust the European Union.

The results seem impressive, but if you read the whole report, you will encounter stunning answers that not only give food for thought, but also demonstrate that there are substantial contradictions of values between our perceptions of Europe and the real deal.

The surveyed were suggested rating 13 values that were a) associated with the EU, and b) personal values.

Top 3 values associated with EU

Freedom of speech (92%)

Human rights (91%)

Individual freedom (91%)

Let’s see how those values fared when rated as personal:  

Freedom of speech (20%)

Human rights (32%)

Individual freedom (16%)

These values were key for the surveyed Armenians in terms of their perception of the European Union, but for themselves personally, they were three or even four times less important.

The biggest surprises lie ahead, though.

Top 3 personal values of the surveyed 

Peace, security and stability (58%)

Economic prosperity (42%)

Human rights (32%)

Lowest 3 values 

Respect for other cultures/minorities (8%)

Freedom of religion (8%)

Freedom of the media (2%)

We want to have peace, security and stability, but we think we can do it without respecting other cultures or having free media. To put it mildly, I am surprised that freedom of the media rates so low in the society that always complains about the media. What future can media have in a society with that approach?

83% of the polled associates the EU with democracy, but only 10% considers democracy a personal value.

Almost the same concerns rule of law. 86% of the surveyed people associate it with the EU and only 23% perceive it as an important personal value. This is the picture that we have in a country where all people talk about is past or present unlawfulness.

61% of the polled associates the EU with absence of corruption, while just 25% of the surveyed describe it as personal value. Does it show that corruption is acceptable to some extent for three quarters of the population?

The next indicator is so weird that I find it hard to believe. 91% of the surveyed associate individual freedom with the European Union, but only 16% consider it a personal value.

The results of this poll prove the points I made over the years on different occasions: if we don’t want to change, no government can change us. If individual freedom is unimportant to us, any government will notice it very quickly and feel unchecked. If 3 out of 4 members of our society don’t reject corruption unreservedly, no new anti-corruption body will be efficient.

The strangest part is that 70% of the surveyed are optimistic about Armenia’s future. Not only our conception of the future is vague, but we also seem to believe that it will not be born from the present or inherit its defects.

The full report on the results of the public survey conducted for EU Neighbours East is available here.

Ara Tadevosyan is Director of Mediamax