Photo: ASviS
Eduardo González. 09/08/2017
Spain has gone up two positions, to the 23rd, among the world’s most peaceful countries, according to the Global Peace Index (GPI), a study that has been carried out by the Institute for Economics and Peace since 2007 and in which, one more year, Iceland appears at the top of the list of the 163 countries analysed.
The situation has improved in 93 countries and it has worsened in 68 in the last twelve months, according to the report, drawn up by the Institute for Economics and Peace (an organization founded by the businessman and philanthropist Steve Killelea) and by other think tanks and centres of studies.
The report is based on 23 qualitative and quantitative indicators, such as the existence of internal or external armed conflicts, violent crimes, the border situation, the degree of militarization, the economic cost of violence or the amount of weapons circulating in a country.
These factors are also related to other indicators (income, education, transparency and integrity and honesty of the public offices) to determine the security level of each country. The index has been very criticized for not including violence against women and children.
With all these data, Iceland has been holding the first position since the first time the report drawn up (it only failed in 2010, when it held the second position). The second position corresponds to New Zealand, followed by Portugal (thanks to the “internal stability” and the financial recovery) and Austria. At the other end of the list, we find Syria.
Iceland keeps leading the Global Peace Index, which shows improvement in 93 countries and deterioration in 68
In the case of Europe, the report highlights the rise of populist movements since 2005 as a distorting factor. Whereas France has fallen five positions in the ranking (to the 51st position) due to terrorism, the United Kingdom has gone up six positions (to the 41st position) despite of the rise of terrorism. The report was carried out before the last attacks of Manchester and London.
Spain, which appears as a country with a “high” peace level, holds the 23rd position, two positions above the previous index, and the 13th among the States of the EU.
Making a breakdown, Spain holds the 144th position (in this case, the lower the better) as regards the economic cost of violence, which in our country represented 4.3% of the GDP in 2016, compared to the 12.6% of the GWP.
Besides, it holds the 10th position in international and domestic conflicts and the 22nd position in public order and social peace. As for the degree of militarization, which includes the country’s military capacities, both in terms of economic resources and involvement in operations with weapons, Spain holds the 89th position.
Among the negative factors for the peace in Spain, the study points out the “high level of corruption”, the “rise of populism”, the negative perception of the economic evolution or the lack of trust in political parties. In return, Spain shows a positive attitude towards refugees and it is one of the countries that has increased its trust in the Police the most between 2005 and 2016.
