Während die gemeinsame Initiative von Whistleblower-Netzwerk und zwei anderen europäischen Whistleblower-Organisationen für mehr Whistleblowerschutz in Europa leider weitgehend unbemerkt blieb und auch der Whistleblowerschutz innerhalb der EU-Institutionen nach einer für das Europäische Parlament angefertigten Studie in einem beklagenswerten Zustand ist, scheint sich in Afrika jetzt etwas zu tun.
In einer Presseerklärung des Government Accountability Projects (GAP) wird das neue Whistleblowerregime bei der African Development Bank (AFDB) jetzt jedenfalls als für Internationale Organisationen vorbildlich gepriesen. Als wichtigste Elemente werden genannt:
The reform would:
* Protect any person whose disclosure of corruption is supported by a reasonable belief that it is true.
* Protect those who challenge national or international illegality, as well as abuse of authority, mismanagement, gross waste, or a substantial health or safety threat.
* Protect those who refuse to violate the law.
* Protect not only AFDB staff, but contractors and their employees, NGO’s, private citizens, or any entity exercising free speech rights to challenge abuses of power.
* Protect AFDB contractor employees from harassment within their companies, through making whistleblower rights a precondition of loan agreements and providing accountability through sanctions up to contract termination.
* Outlaw all forms of harassment, including threatened or recommended harassment.
* Establish confidentiality protection, including the right for prior review by whistleblowers of releases that otherwise might inadvertently disclose their identities, and accountability by designating confidentiality breaches as actionable misconduct.
* Commit to independent Alternative Disputes Resolution in which employees are partners in establishing the rules for resolution of their cases.
* Provide interim relief for reprisal victims while the case is pending.
* Promote accountability and deter retaliation through publicly-disclosed discipline of those who engage in retaliation.