During the regular lesson of the Anti-Corruption School for Young Leaders, the participants got acquainted with the whisteblowing system, its types, discussed the main problems and risks of the legislation, as well as the existing legislative gaps regarding the mechanisms for the protection and promotion of whistleblowers’ rights.

Lecturer Ms Syuzanna Soghomonyan, an advocate, anti-corruption expert at the Armenian Lawyers’ Association presented information on the whistleblowing, the mechanisms for the protection whistleblowers, as well as the main challenges that exist in this area.

Whistleblowing is a written or oral reporting by the reporting person to the competent person or body provided for by this Law, about the existing corruption cases or conflicts of interests in state and local self-governing bodies, state institutions and organizations, as well as in organizations of public interest, or breach of ethical rules or incompatibility requirements or other restrictions or infringements related to declaration system, or other damage to public interest, or such threats in the state and local self-governing bodies, state institutions and organizations

The objective of the whistleblowing is to identify the corruption cases, conflicts of interest, infringement of the ethical rules, incompatibility requirements, and other limitations, infringement of declaration system, and other damages and threats to public interest. The system aims at forming a intolerant attitude of the socially towards corruption.

“The whistleblowing system has been operating in Armenia since 2017, but has its own shortcomings. Particularly, it is not regulated in the penitentiary institutions and in the private sector where a large number of offenses are recorded. Undoubtedly, information that is not a crime report through Unified E-Platform for Whistleblowing is not investigated by the RA General Prosecutor’s Office; it is simply sent to the relevant body. The body can either process or stop it.

It awareness of the public about the reporting system is also a low and there is a need to carry out regular public awareness activities” Susanna Soghomonyan said.

 “The Armenian Lawyers’ Association” NGO is organizing the Anti-Corruption School for Young Leaders in cooperation with the Armenian CSO Anti-Corruption Coalition.

Iravaban.net independent information website is the information partner of the Anti-Corruption School for Young Leaders.