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The Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's parliament, has passed Presidential Bill No. 1010 to amend the law "On Prevention of Corruption" regarding corruption whistleblowers.

In particular, the bill proposes that the said law be amended to define a legal status of corruption whistleblowers, their rights and safety guarantees; provide conditions for the disclosure of relevant information; regulate the disclosure procedure; exempt whistleblowers from legal liability for disclosure of information on corruption-related offenses; and ensure their government protection, including protection of whistleblowers' labor rights.

According to the bill, a whistleblower is a person who, being convinced that the information is reliable, has reported facts of corruption or corruption-related offenses, and other violations of law on prevention of corruption to the relevant authorities.

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An employee with the relevant body may report on possible facts of corruption or corruption-related offenses anonymously.

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The state promotes and encourages whistleblowers to report possible corruption or corruption-related offenses, other violations of law – orally and in writing – including via special hotines, websites, electronic communications, media, journalists, public associations, and trade unions, etc.

The bill also stipulates amendments to the Criminal Procedure Code. That is, the whistleblower shall be paid remuneration within 10% of the monetary amount of corrupt funds or damage inflicted on the state, but not more than 3,000 minimum wages as of the moment the crime was committed. The said remuneration is paid if corrupt funds or losses incurred by the state are at least 5,000 times over the cost of living.

The implementation of the law, if passed, will require budget expenditures aimed at financing measures to ensure that whistleblowers' rights are observed and their safety, as well as proper compensation is guaranteed.

The bill envisage the sources of income to this end, namely the funds received from the compensation of damage to the state, as well as the payment of fines, to be applied according to the court rulings (sentences).

As UNIAN reported earlier, on Sept 11, the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Anti-corruption Policy recommended that the parliament pass the bill at first reading.