The fight against corrupt practices in all spheres of public relations requires the effective development of the whistleblowing institution in the country and the introduction of effective standards for the protection of whistleblowers.
This was discussed by the Head of the National Agency on Corruption Prevention (NACP), Viktor Pavlushchyk, during the fourth annual conference, "Corruption Whistleblowers in Ukraine: Successes and Challenges."
"The whistleblowing institution in Ukraine has moved away from the negative perception dictated by the Soviet paradigm. We now speak of whistleblowers as active, brave, and courageous people. According to sociological data, 73% of Ukrainians consider corruption the second most significant problem in the country, while 19% have personally encountered it. This means there is a large percentage of people who have not faced corruption but do not tolerate it and have the will and desire for change," noted the Head of NACP.
He emphasized that whistleblowing also requires incentives from the state, and therefore the State Anti-Corruption Program outlines a number of corresponding measures.
Victor Pavlushchyk noted that today more than 3,000 organizations are connected to the Unified Whistleblower Reporting Portal, and more than 90,000 from all regions of the country are expected to be connected. The portal's functionality ensures the anonymity and confidentiality of whistleblowers. Its goal is not the mass volume of reports, but the formation of a whistleblowing culture that gradually reduces corruption at all levels.
Deputy Head of NACP, Iaroslav Liubchenko, added that the SACP identifies three main problems of the whistleblowing institution that remain relevant today and provides for specific measures to address them.
"NACP has developed, and the Government has approved a nationwide Communication Strategy in the field of preventing corruption, which includes a number of measures aimed at stimulating the development of the whistleblowing institution and respect for whistleblowers in society. In December 2023, at the conference of the States Parties to the United Nations Convention against Corruption, we presented the 'Manager's Guide,' which pays particular attention to whistleblowing within organizations. Several online courses have also been introduced, providing the necessary knowledge base for whistleblowers and the subjects authorized to handle their reports," stated Iaroslav Liubchenko.
He emphasized that to build the whistleblowing institution, the experience and working models of different countries are analyzed.
Speakers at the conference also included a legal advisor of "Transparency International Ukraine," Oleksandr Kalitenko; Ukrainian MP and the head of the Parliamentary Committee on Freedom of Speech, Yaroslav Yurchyshyn; international experts Tom Devine, Suelette Dreyfus, and David Banisar; Supreme Court judges Myroslava Bilak and Oleksandra Yanovska; a lawyer and director of the NGO "Labor Initiatives" Heorhii Sandul; a lawyer, public figure, and serviceman Masi Nayyem, and the head of the Anti-Corruption Research and Education Centre at the National University of "Kyiv-Mohyla Academy," Oksana Nesterenko. Participants discussed the problems of the effective operation of the Unified Whistleblower Reporting Portal and the protection of individuals who report corruption, whistleblowing in the military sphere, the protection of servicemen, the implementation of international standards in the legal framework for whistleblowers, and the introduction of legislative initiatives aimed at the effective operation of the whistleblowing institution in Ukraine.
It should be reminded that on September 6, 2023, NACP launched the Unified Whistleblower Reporting Portal, where citizens can report instances of corruption.
Background Information:
The conference organizers are the Anti-Corruption Research and Education Centre of the NaUKMA (ACREC) and the National Agency on Corruption Prevention. The event was made possible with the financial support of the International Renaissance Foundation.
A video recording of the conference is available via the link.
