New legislation aims to encourage public servants to come forward with any information on public sector corruption
NEW DELHI (TrustLaw) - Bangladesh is stepping up its fight against graft with a new law to encourage and protect government workers or “whistleblowers” who want to disclose information on corruption in public offices but are too frightened to speak out, experts say.
Rampant corruption is not only curtailing Bangladesh's economic growth but also hindering its ability to lift millions of people out of poverty in the South Asian country, one of the poorest in the world.
"The disclosure of information on corruption is fundamental to be able to fight graft but often officials are worried to report corrupt practices amongst their peers and superiors for fear of reprisals," said Iftekhar Zaman, executive director of Transparency International Bangladesh.
"The whistleblowers' protection bill came before parliament in the last session and there is a strong ossibility that it will be adopted before the end of the year," said Zaman, adding that a draft bill is currently being examined by a parliamentary committee.
Bangladesh is currently ranked 134 among 178 countries in Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index with a score of 2.4 (0 being the most corrupt and 10 being last).
Experts say the country's public sector is plagued with graft -- particularly in institutions such as schools and hospitals where people have to pay bribes for services which they are entitled to such as admissions for schools and medical treatment.
There is also higher-level corruption in political and administrative offices, such as in procurement and tendering processes or in dealing with foreign companies who complain that they are at times subjected to costly and unnecessary licence and permit requirements.
FEAR AND SECRECY
The bill aims to encourage public servants to come forward with any information on “reckless, excessive or unauthorised use of power” or on actions by their peers “which would result in wastage of public funds.”
This includes the embezzlement of public funds, but also applies to cases where public servants take decisions that risk public health and safety, damage to the environment or result in unfair discrimination, according to the draft bill.
But experts say while many government officials are often aware that their peers or superiors are taking bribes or illegally awarding tenders to their relatives and friends, most worry about the repercussions if they report such practices.
"There are psychological deterrents about disclosing information about colleagues as people are worried that they will be victimised, harassed or discriminated against by being demoted or transferred to another department or forced into retirement," said Zaman.
The new law will bar authorities from revealing the identities of informants and stipulates that anyone found to be “victimising” another official who has divulged information will be punished with a jail term of up to five years.
The bill has a provision for rewarding whistleblowers if a strong case is detected based on their information. But the bill also seeks to punish those who misuse the law to gain a reward, or due to a personal and professional dispute -- with imprisonment of up to three years and a fine.
While there are no studies to prove that laws to protect whistleblowers have directly resulted in reducing corruption in other countries, experts supporting the new law say it will be a step in the right direction for Bangladesh.
“There is a culture of secrecy over talking about graft in the public sector, and this is also true for Bangladesh,” said Firoz Ahmed, head of public sector management at the Asian Development Bank, which funds a range of good governance initiatives in the country.
Ahmed said, however, that the situation was improving due to very strong demand in Bangladesh for more information.
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