IRZ participation in training for the High Anti-Corruption Court of Ukraine
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- Published: March 6, 2022
On 23 February, 2022, just a day before the start of the unilateral military aggression by Russian armed forces against Ukraine, the IRZ took part in a training course for judges of the High Anti-Corruption Court of Ukraine.
The event was scheduled to last for a full week, conducted by the National School of Judges of Ukraine, an institution the IRZ has been working with for many years This event was an advanced training course for judges, required by law, and it enabled the IRZ to work with the High Anti-Corruption Court of Ukraine, which was founded in 2019, for the first time.
The IRZ was able to engage former Attorney General, Walter Selter, as an expert speaker, who gave a presentation on “Whistleblowers. Importance and protection” in the afternoon of 23 February, 2022. In addition to the procedures to protect whistleblowers, Mr. Selter discussed the gathering and evaluation of evidence with respect to information received from whistleblowers in investigations and criminal procedures. He also presented the leniency program.
Germany has no separate law regarding whistleblowers at present. The EU Whistleblower Directive, which should have been adopted into national law by December 2021, has not yet been adopted in Germany. However, a corresponding law is now being drafted. The notion of the whistleblower or “discloser” was introduced into legislation in Ukraine: “On Amendments to the Law of Ukraine ‘On Prevention of Corruption’”. Ukrainian law also stipulates a financial reward for whistleblowers, which may be problematic in terms of the objectivity of the information, whereas no such financial incentive exists under German law. The leniency program was of particular interest in the Q&A session which followed the presentation.
