In case of any problems and issues arising in the business sector, including tax, customs, free economic competition, licenses and permits, problems and issues arising in the field of public procurement, business representatives can report on the reporting platform that collects issues of the business sector – Bizprotect.am.
Anyone can submit a report, including a representative of small and medium business, public officers, tax and customs officers, as well as other persons who have faced problems in the business sector in the territory of the Republic of Armenia or a problem related to the activities of the competent authorities of the Republic of Armenia.
It is recommended to submit a report immediately when a problem arises. If this is not possible, then as soon as possible. However, it is also necessary to pay attention to the terms defined by the legislation of the Republic of Armenia.
Reports can be submitted here. Submitting reports is free.
The mandatory details for submitting a report are the information on the agency, in relation to which the problem has arisen, the information on the location of the agency, by marz and by city, on the nature the problem, on the description of the case, on the date that the issue occurred. Filling in the above-mentioned information is sufficient to complete the report and to submit it.
It is also possible to attach photos and other evidence proving the problem. In addition, it is also possible to fill in personal information.
It is important to emphasize that it is also possible to report the existing problem anonymously.
The confidentiality of a whistleblower is maintained. However, there are two levels for maintaing confidentiality. The website enables you to remain anonymous in case of submitting a report with both options.
However, for getting a higher degree of protection and confidentiality it is necessary to submit a report via the webpage which is not available via a standard browser. It is available exclusively via a TOR browser designed to conceal information from third persons. TOR conceals your IP address and encrypts the data. The TOR browser is free and available to everyone.
Confidentiality is also maintained in case of submitting a report via a standard browser, but the data encryption does not happen, thus the information is not protected, for example, in the case of cyber attacks.
Which option is more preferable: report anonymously or reveal my identity?
Both options have their advantages. The advantage of reporting anonymously is that confidentiality is ensured, thus the submission of a report cannot have negative legal consequences for the given person. However, it is encouraged to indicate a name, as it will contribute to the solution of your problem.
In which cases can the identity of a whistleblower be revealed?
The identity of a whistleblower can be revealed in the following cases:
– If a person has voluntarily indicated personal data,
– If a person has voluntarily presented such detailed information that only he/she can possess within the bounds of reason, for example, indication of the exact time and the name of the official, with whom the problem occurred, in these cases it is logical that the official can identify the report and link it to a particular incident regarding serving a citizen that day,
– If a person has discussed his/her reported information with the family members, friends, colleagues or others, there is a risk that they may disseminate the given information and the fact that the person has submitted a report.
If your reported information contains a potential criminal offence, the report is submitted to the consideration of the law enforcement agencies. If you have submitted the report via a standard browser, our experts will not reveal your identity while transferring the report. In addition, under current law, it is not mandatory to initiate a case based on an anonymous report, thus a law enforcement agency decides, on its own initiative, whether to initiate a criminal case on the report or not.
If you have submitted the report via a standard browser and your identity is revealed, in case of initiating a criminal case you may be called as a witness in the manner provided for by law.
If the presented information in the report is not inaccurate and / or incomplete and is not false information, you will not be subject to liability for false reporting. At the same time, our experts can contact you and ask for complete information.
The person submitted report will regularly get information about at which stage the submitted report is, in particular, whether it has been submitted to a competent authority, whether the competent authority has submitted a positive or negative response on the given case, and, if it contains a potential criminal offence, whether it has been submitted to a law enforcement agency, whether the law enforcement agency has initiated a criminal case, etc.
In addition, if we receive a number of reports regarding the same sector, the same location or the same official, discussions and seminars aimed at evidence-based reforms in the public-private sector dialogue format will be held for solving them, and you can find out about this in the news section of the website.
Whistle-blowing is a written or oral reporting by a whistle-blower to an authorized person or body provided for by this Law of information regarding a case of corruption or a violation in respect of conflict of interests, or rules of ethics or incompatibility requirements, or other restrictions or declaration, or other harm to public interests or the threat thereof within state and local self-government bodies, state institutions and organizations, as well as within public organizations;
We do not forget that whistle-blowers are not “snitchers”, they are decent and law abiding citizens.
This publication was prepared within the framework of the program “Multifaceted Whistle-Blowing Promotion in Armenia”, implemented by the “Armenian Lawyers Association” (ALA) NGO with the support of the Open Government Partnership (OGP), funded by the European Union (EU) within the framework of the “EU for Good, Eastern Partnership” project.
This publication expresses the position of the author, the ALA, which does not necessarily coincide with the position of the OGP and the EU.
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