Romanians would go for "soft" capitalism

Most Romanians (45%) feel that the state should try to rescue the state-owned loss-making enterprises, so that jobs can be maintained, according to a poll conducted by CURS in June.

However, another 39% consider that these companies should be closed down, while 9% of the Romanians belong to the category of “incurable” optimists.

Moreover, 77% of respondents would always choose low but certain incomes over high but uncertain revenues. Only 15% of them consider that the chance for a better living is worth the risk. On the other hand, privatisation is still a priority, but 53% of the respondents feel that it is being enforced too slowly.

However, 17% are content with the current pace of privatisation and only 8% consider that the Government is rushing things. Sociologists explain that this attitude was mainly triggered by the pro-privatisation media campaign and that people have a rather idyllic image about this issue.

Even so, 52% of respondents think that most companies should be privatised, but the entrepreneurial spirit is nowhere to be found: 86% of the interviewed do not intend to start up their own businesses over the next period.

The authors of the survey outlined an ambiguous attitude regarding market economy: Romanians want state-owned companies to be privatised, but, on the other hand, they feel that an individual business is not the answer.

Researchers explain that these responses come from two categories of people: the first category includes the pensioners, housewives, farmers and generally low-educated people, who are content with low incomes, while city dwellers, active college-graduates, support privatisation. The only problem is that the number of those from the first category outruns the others.