How to Effectively Protect Whistleblowers? We’ve got the answers from “the Southeast Asian Anti-Corruption Network (SEA-ACN) Roundtable Discussion”
This event was organized by Knowledge Hub for Regional Anti-corruption and Good Governance Collaboration (KRAC) of the Faculty of Economics, Chulalongkorn University, supported by the National Research Council of Thailand (NRCT) in collaboration with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Chandler Institute of Good Governance, and the US Embassy in Thailand.
The roundtable discussion on “Whistleblower Protection” focused on promoting and developing measures or laws to protect whistleblowers in member countries. The discussion included participants from six organizations:
(1) Chandler Institute of Governance
(2) Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ)
(3) Harvard University
(4) International Foundation for Electoral System (IFES)
(5) People’s Empowerment Foundation
(6) Association for the Implementation of the UN Convention against Corruption (UNCAC)
Participants discussed the idea of organizing a “Southeast Asia Whistleblower Summit,” inviting stakeholders from various sectors, including government, private sector, civil society, and media, to exchange information and knowledge related to whistleblower protection practices in Southeast Asia and the current state of whistleblower protection in each country.
The meeting emphasized the need for collaboration among various sectors to share information and work together. It highlighted the importance of educating regional parliaments on the legislative process for whistleblower protection laws. International non-governmental organizations (INGOs) were suggested to share knowledge and case studies, best practices, or challenges related to different forms of corruption and international standards for whistleblower protection. Experts, academics, and young people were encouraged to participate in this summit to exchange knowledge and ideas.
The “Summit” was seen as a starting point for establishing guidelines and standards for whistleblower protection in Southeast Asia, where strong whistleblower protection laws are still lacking. The SEA-ACN network could lead the organization of the summit and learn from mechanisms outside Southeast Asia, ensuring whistleblower protection includes marginalized groups.
Participants also suggested that SEA-ACN should create communication channels to facilitate information exchange among members and establish a bulletin board to publish brief updates on progress, expanding efforts, and raising whistleblower protection standards in Southeast Asia.
This is another key topic from the roundtable discussion. What’s next? Follow us on Facebook KRAC Corruption for more updates from the discussion!
YEAR
2024
AUTHOR
Knowledge hub for Regional Anti-corruption and good governance Collaboration (KRAC)
ORGANIZATION
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