WUNRN
WOMEN WHISTLE BLOWERS
In today’s world, risks to women “whistleblowers,” are critical, even fatal. Whether reporting truths and testimony on military, UN forces, corporations, trafficking, legal infractions, corruption of all kinds…..women face enormous challenges to defend human rights and justice. They often face highly paid opposition lawyers, job loss, harassments, threats, and dangers to self, family, property, even death/murder. The courage and commitment of whistleblowers is often hidden, but they are brave, dedicated defenders for rights and justice for women, children, civil society, all.
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The Whistleblower - Film
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=al3anBiHwmI
Rachel
Weisz new drama, based on the experiences of Kathryn Bolkovac, a Nebraska
policewoman who served as a peacekeeper in post-war Bosnia and outed the U.N.
for covering up a sex scandal.
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Whistleblowers
& The Mainstreaming of a Protection Within The
United
Nations Guiding Principles on Business & Human Rights
SUBMISSION TO THE UN WORKING GROUP ON THE ISSUE OF HUMAN RIGHTS &
TRANSNATIONAL CORPORATIONS & OTHER BUSINESSES
Direct Link to Full 14-Page Document: http://business-humanrights.org/sites/default/files/media/documents/a-poitevin-submission-unwgbhr-whistleblowers-feb-2014.pdf
By Arnaud Poitevin* Done in Aix-en-Provence, France, on February, 7th, 2014.
The issue of protection of whistleblowers has recently generated greater attention from the international community, especially in relation with serious threats to the human right to privacy entailed by the intelligence operations of certain States or the business activity of internet and information technology companies. The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, declared in this respect in July 2013: “Snowden’s case has shown the need to protect persons disclosing information on matters that have implications for human rights, as well as the importance of ensuring respect for the right to privacy.”
The United Nations Independent Expert on the promotion of a democratic and equitable international order stressed in September 2013 that “specific protection must be granted to human rights defenders and whistleblowers” 2 , pointing threats created by breaches, in some countries, of the rights to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association.
Earlier in 2012, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health called for the implementation of “protection for workers who disclose information concerning their occupational health”.
What exactly is a whistleblower? The concept of whistleblower is not usually framed by any specific legal definition. The expression is usually tracked back to American activist Ralph Nader who defined whistleblowing in 1971 as “an act of a man or woman who, believing that the public interest overrides the interest of the organization he serves, blows the whistle that the organization is in corrupt, illegal, fraudulent or harmful activity.”
A definition of whistleblowing which is commonly referred to by legal scholars is the one of Near and Miceli: “The disclosure by organization members (former or current) of illegal, immoral or illegitimate practices under the control of their employers, to persons or organizations that may be able to effect action.”
The Council of Europe (COE) defines a whistleblower as “any person who reports or discloses information on a [serious] threat or harm to the public interest in the context of their work-based relationship.”
A brief view at the current state of legal domestic and international provisions addressing whistleblowers protection reveals the need to mention the risk of de facto or de jure retaliation faced by them as an additional key component of a possible relevant legal definition of whistleblowing. The threat is especially but not only acute within their professional framework in relation with duties of loyalty and/or confidentiality. All disclosures will not for example reach a high enough level of seriousness to be considered as whistleblowing.
The United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGP) taking into account not only insiders but also outsiders of organizations, that is to say the whole spectrum of stakeholders to any organization, the relevance of a definition narrowing whistleblowing only to organization members might be discussed.
With regards to what precedes, a more satisfactory definition of whistleblower would be: “An individual who, having disclosed information about illicit or non-compliant activities, or activities harmful to the public interest, and facing consecutively serious retaliations or threats thereof, including within its professional framework, necessitates a protection.”
The increasing light thrown on the issue of whistleblowing, both on the international and national stages, is an occasion to determine what the state of whistleblowers legal protection is today and how it impacts the UNGP, first ever global standard addressing adverse impacts of businesses on human rights, unanimously endorsed by the Human Rights Council on June, 16th, 2011.
FULL 14-PAGE 2014 DOCUMENT: http://business-humanrights.org/sites/default/files/media/documents/a-poitevin-submission-unwgbhr-whistleblowers-feb-2014.pdf