Whistleblowers` in Ukraine: Achievements and Challenges

On July 10, 2024, LI legal director George Sandul, Tristan Masat, SC Country Program Director for Ukraine participated in the 4th annual conference on whistleblowers` protection.  The conference was organized by the Anti-Corruption Research and Education Centre at the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy (ACREC) and the National Agency on Corruption Prevention (NACP).

Transparency International, Members of Parliament, international and national experts in whistleblower protection, judges, representatives of civil society organizations, NACP employees, and compliance officers attended the conference. 

One of the focuses of this year’s conference was a discussion on protections for those who help make the security and defense sector more transparent. MPs, war veterans, and experts emphasized that one of the key tasks now is to release from liability a whistleblower who has disclosed information with restricted access and to create secure channels for such reports.

Tristan and George gave presentations during the panel discussion about the practical dimension of whistleblower protection legislative clauses.

Emphasizing the role of the unions and freedom of association in combating corruption, Tristan and George also stated that labor safeguards from retaliation are the first frontier every whistleblower faces exposing corruption. The landmark decision about reinstating the union whistleblower Olena Bebeshko was also highlighted as a unique case for Ukraine that is still ongoing – Olena is now challenging the third firing after exposing corruption in the well-known state enterprise.