Workshop with Civil Society on the topic of whistleblowing

Transparency International Romania is implementing, between March 2024 and February 2026, the project Legitimacy and Accountability for better protection of Whistleblowers – LAW. As part of this initiative, a series of workshops dedicated to whistleblowing is being organized for representatives of civil society.

The first workshop in this series took place on July 17, 2024, in Bucharest, at the TI Romania headquarters, bringing together representatives from ten NGOs active in fields such as environmental protection, citizen advocacy, promotion of democracy and civic engagement, women’s and ethnic minority rights, as well as organizations advocating for anti-corruption measures and the improvement of integrity mechanisms.

The main topics addressed included:

• The role of civil society in supporting potential whistleblowers, in line with the new legislation on whistleblower protection;
• The importance of whistleblowing in a democratic society;
• European best practices in handling whistleblowing and protecting whistleblowers.

 

Law no. 361/2022 on the protection of whistleblowers in the public interest transposes at the national level the Directive (EU) 2019/1937 of the European Parliament and the Council of October 23, 2019, on the protection of persons who report breaches of Union law. According to this legislation, the National Integrity Agency serves as an external reporting channel, receiving reports related to breaches of the law within its area of competence.

The Legitimacy and Accountability for better protection of Whistleblowers – LAW project is implemented by Transparency International Romania in partnership with the National Integrity Agency and Transparency International Bulgaria, and co-funded by the European Union.

Similar workshops will be held in Bulgaria throughout the project's duration, alongside other learning activities in both countries, such as training programs for experts in the field and seminars for students from faculties preparing future legal and public administration specialists.

Through its activities and expected outcomes, the LAW project aims to contribute to national and European Union efforts to support and protect whistleblowers while strengthening the capacity of national authorities and legal practitioners to ensure legal protection for whistleblowers. More information about the project can be found [here].

Project co-funded by the European Union through the European Commission – Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values programme (CERV).