June 2025 –
Following the publication of UNODC’s international Study on Best Practices and Challenges in the Protection of Reporting Persons, and an extensive discussion in the plenary at the 16th session of the Implementation Review Group, the subsequent event was held the next day to continue the discussion around whistleblowers, this time, with the active participation of expert NGOs, focusing on their perspectives on the implementation of CoSP resolution 10/8 They discussed in particular the effectiveness of the Resolution and shared regional experiences of whistleblowing realities in Europe, Africa and Latin America.
Samantha Feinstein (moderator), from the Government Accountability Project, began with their most recent report written in collaboration with the UNCAC Coalition Working Group on Whistleblower Protection and other Reporting Persons evaluating the global implementation of the Resolution and Article 33. Its findings and recommendations can be found here.
EU Union’s Whistleblower directive overview
Paul Hafellner, Representative for the EU with the European Commission, outlines the European Union’s Whistleblower directive adopted in 2019 and transposed by EU Member States by the end of 2021. The directive sets out common minimum standards across EU Member States for the protection of whistleblowers, and is currently being assessed by the EU to evaluate the conformity of national legislation with the directive.
Transparency International shares the work they have been doing to strengthen the implementation of the EU directive; such as the development of a best practice guide and assessment report. They worked closely with their national chapters to provide recommendations and raise awareness around the issue of whistleblowing, as well as push for a more transparent and inclusive legislative process.
Resolution 10/8
Vladimir Radomirovic of Pistaljka affirms the effectiveness of Resolution 10/8 since it passed, with 50 countries giving spoken contributions during the plenary on whistleblowers the day prior–demonstrating its importance globally.
He underscored the importance of putting standards in place when it comes to the implementation of the Resolution. States parties must respect these standards for effective protection of whistleblowers, such as not speculating about the motives of a whistleblower which could undermine the corrupt act.
Regional perspectives of whistleblower protection laws
Jorge Martinez Rivera, from Whistleblower Chile, provides the Latin American context. He underlines some key issues: there is no common term when addressing whistleblowers, and the issue is still not yet recognised as one of public interest in the court system. Whistleblower protection in Latin America remains a foreign legal category in need of full legal transplant. Collaboration across organizations is needed to move international best practices into domestic legislation.
From a civil society perspective, organizations are mapping out the different realities of what whistleblowing is and stands for across Latin America, and are working accordingly to strengthen frameworks.
Zeineb Abdennebi from the Platform to Protect Whistleblowers in Africa (PPLAAF), highlights that only 12 countries have a Whistleblower law in place, and 30 countries have provisions that mention whistleblowers. This demonstrates inconsistency across the region, often spurred on by misconceptions about whistleblowers. Whistleblowers are frequently labelled as disloyal, motivated by money or snitches. Additionally, where legislation is present, it tends to be compounded by weak enforcement.
Resources on internal reporting channels
Maria Terracol, from Transparency International (TI), shared resources available for creating safe internal reporting channels for whistleblowers. TI are very active in supporting all stakeholders involved in whistleblower legislation and have created a set of tools to help develop, evaluate and constantly improve internal whistleblowing systems, including:
These tools can be implemented to fit local contexts and varying enterprise sizes.
She reminds the audience that businesses can save a lot of money and avoid reputational damage if whistleblowers have internal channels or hotlines to turn to.
Strengthening the UNCAC
Even with a resolution and international standards in place, Vladimir asserts that protection of whistleblowers must be locally owned and “homegrown” to be fully effective. Organisations must have a full understanding of the legislative frameworks in their country.
Laws alone are not enough, it matters how they’re understood, how they’re enforced and how they’re experienced in practice. Work must continue with governments, civil society and other international bodies to make sure Whistleblowers are protected and respected.