For immediate release –

1 April 2011

PRESS RELEASE Rwanda: ARTICLE 19 Calls for the Improvement of Law on Protection of Whistleblowers London 01.04.11: Today, ARTICLE 19 releases its analysis of the Draft Law Relating to the Protection of Whistleblowers of Rwanda. ARTICLE 19 commends the initiative of the Rwandan legislators to develop a dedicated law on this subject. At the same time, the analysis highlights the weaknesses of the Draft Law and calls for its revision in the light of international standards. “ARTICLE 19 welcomes this important initiative, especially as only a small number of countries have to date enacted comprehensive legislation on whistleblowers,” says Dr Agnes Callamard, ARTICLE 19’s Executive Director. “Since some of the most advanced whistleblower laws can be found in the African continent, Rwanda has the opportunity to draw on local experiences while being a front-runner in global terms.” ARTICLE 19 has previously recommended the Rwandan government elaborate a freestanding law on protection of whistleblowers since only a limited form of protection was previously proposed in the draft Law on Access to Information. ARTICLE 19 finds a number of positive aspects in the Draft Law. In particular, it will apply to all institutions, whether private or public, and sets out a simple procedure for employees in the public sector to follow when they wish to make a disclosure. The draft law offers a strong guarantee of confidentiality to whistleblowers – in some respects, we argue, even too strong. At the same time, the proposal suffers from a number of weaknesses. These include the creation of a series of criminal offences which could see persons making ‘bad faith disclosures’ jailed for extensive periods – a prospect which will deter many employees from coming forward for no benefit of their own. The protections offered to whistleblowers against retribution by their bosses are not wholly convincing, and the range of subjects on which a disclosure may be made is limited. The analysis therefore provides practical guidance on how these issues may be resolved, citing from existing legislation which represents good practice. ARTICLE 19 hopes that the recommendations shall be incorporated to the final version of the Law and stands ready to assist the Government in finalizing the text of the Law and in its implementation in practice.

NOTES TO EDITORS: • For more information please contact: Barbora Bukovska, Senior Director for Law and Programmes, at barbora@article19.org or +44 20 7324 2500 or Henry Maina, ARTICLE 19, Free Word Centre, 60 Farringdon Road, London EC1R 3GA, United Kingdom Tel: +44 (0) 20 7324 2500 / Web: www.article19.org / Email: info@article19.org Director of ARTICLE 19 Kenya, at +254 20 386 2230/2 or email henry@article19.org.

• For the Memorandum see: www.article19.org/pdfs/analysis/rwanda-whistleblowers.pdf

• ARTICLE 19 is an independent human rights organisation that works around the world to protect and promote the right to freedom of expression. It takes its name from Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which guarantees free speech.

Source: http://www.article19.org/

Reprinted with permission from http://www.article19.org/