On May 4, 2023, the Whistleblowers Protection Act entered into force. It requires the establishment of a national mechanism for the protection of whistleblowers, as well as receiving, checking, and taking action on each report.
All this affects both government authorities and municipalities, as well as the widest range of business and media representatives, who will have to take practical measures in this direction.
As part of Speak Up Europe project, Transparency International Bulgaria organize a round table on “Challenges and perspectives in the protection of whistleblowers or publicly disclosing information about violations”.
During the round table TI-Bulgaria presented National Guidance for public and private organizations on how to implement effective whistleblowing mechanisms: that aim to support the implementation of effective internal systems for reporting violations by organizations in the public and private sectors in Bulgaria.
The National Guidance also is going to help organizations operating in the EU to meet their obligations under the EU Directive (2019/1937) on the protection of whistleblowers in EU.
Guidance on best practices of internal whistleblowing systems is provided in line with the EU Directive on the protection of persons reporting on breaches of Union law and the ISO guidelines on whistleblower management systems.
As addition to our work on the topic we published Model for internal reporting and follow-up that is going to serve as a basis for the implementation of internal reporting rules beneficial for public and private organizations.
The Law on the Protection of Persons Reporting or Publicly Disclosing Information on Violations creates guarantees for the protection of the persons who report, but the ultimate goal is primarily the protection of the public interest, Lyubomir Grancharov and Atanaska Georgieva from Personal Data Protection Commission are categorical. According to them, “trust is important for the implementation of the law – the trust that people who dare to report irregularities will be protected, and this trust can only be built over time and in the process of implementing the new legislation.”
“It is necessary to work to promote the philosophy and goals of the law among the general public in order to influence negative attitudes and thinking, which perceives it as a law to protect informers,” explained Atanaska Georgieva.
During the round table Dr. Daniela Chavdarova, Manager of “Fi Health – Sofia”, shared about the experience and the need to implement internal channels for reporting as part of the organizational culture of the medical center and as part of the standards for business integrity. Dr. Chavdarova presented innovative approaches that contribute to the promotion of business integrity in the wider healthcare system in Bulgaria.
A special panel of the discussion was dedicated to the media. The main messages in the speech of Ms. Snezhana Todorova – President of the Union of Bulgarian Journalists were dedicated to the importance of ethical journalism and media freedom as a guarantee for transparency and integrity and a necessary element in the public disclosure of irregularities.
Ms. Todorova also presented the efforts to create a European regulation – the proposal for a legislative act to protect media freedom of the European Commission, aimed at establishing minimum standards for editorial independence, transparency of media ownership and rules to limit the influence of authorities.
That not only the authorities but also the corporations are often tempted to exert pressure and control – often by unauthorized means – over journalists, reminded the Executive Director of Transparency International Bulgaria Kalin Slavov. He drew attention to the anti-SLAPP directive, which warns that not only the informant but also the journalist can be prosecuted in order not to disclose information about violations.
Kalin Slavov presented the efforts that Transparency International Bulgaria is making to help the Law to start working in our country. “Each of the obliged persons, especially the business, must introduce the systems described in the normative acts of the Act. But they need to be transformed into specific rules and procedures to make this law work,” he explained.
Kalin Slavov presented the most modern concept in business management, based on the “three pillars” of Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance (ESG).
Funding from EU funds, as well as from large companies and institutions, already depends on an assessment of these three factors, he warned. “Every company is valued by these 3 components and, if you miss them, you are not the good partner for big business. He sees in these three components a risk that he has to transfer to himself if he works with you, “Slavov explained.
“We at Transparency International have been working on good governance for 25 years. This is part of our philosophy. Now we have prepared tools for business, extremely pragmatic, to help them integrate into the requirements of business integrity. We have made a system to help those who need to enter signal protection, check alerts, prepare reports and changes to management systems. All this is digitized and placed in a secure environment through systems that do not allow a record to be changed once made — neither by date, nor by author nor by content. Whoever tries to do it, there will also be a record of this, “warned Kalin Slavov.
In the ensuing discussion, many questions were asked, including by representatives of the municipalities. The law is a big test for the smaller ones who do not have the necessary resources to meet its requirements.
The round table was implemented as part of the Speak Up Europe project, which encourages European citizens in 4 EU countries – Bulgaria, Italy, Slovenia and Hungary to report violations and irregularities to public, private and civil society organizations that can take action to prevent corruption in high-risk areas of the EU. The project is funded by the European Commission, Internal Security Fund – Police.