The Law on the Protection of Whistleblowers of the Republic of Lithuania ( hereinafter referred to as “the Law”) establishes a mechanism for the protection of persons who have provided information on an irregularity in an institution with which they are or have been bound by service, employment or contractual relations. The Law also establishes the rights and obligations of persons who report infringements in institutions, the grounds and forms of their legal protection, as well as measures to protect, encourage and assist such persons, with a view to providing adequate opportunities for reporting infringements of the law which threaten or violate the public interest, and to ensuring the prevention and detection of such infringements.
Under the Act, information on infringements is provided on:
(1) a risk to public safety or health or to the life or health of a person;
2) environmental risks;
3. obstructing or improperly influencing investigations by law enforcement authorities or the administration of justice;
4) financing illegal activities;
5) illegal or non-transparent use of public funds or assets;
6) ill-gotten wealth;
7) concealing the consequences of the infringement, obstructing the determination of the extent of the consequences;
8. other infringements.
A person can provide information about an infringement by:
- directly at the Panevėžys Cultural Centre;
- by sending a notification by post;
- by sending information to the Panevėžys Culture Centre’s e-mail address info@pankultura.lt
- publicly.
In order to effectively implement the provisions of the Law, the Government of the Republic of Lithuania, by Resolution No 1133 of 14 November 2018 “On the Implementation of the Law on the Protection of Whistleblowers of the Republic of Lithuania”, has approved:
1. Description of the procedure for remunerating whistleblowers for valuable information;
2. Description of the procedure for compensating whistleblowers for any adverse effects or potential effects resulting from the submission of a notification;
3. A description of the procedures for setting up and ensuring the functioning of internal whistleblowing channels.
The description of procedures for the implementation and functioning of internal whistleblowing channels sets out the requirements for the implementation of internal whistleblowing channels in establishments, their functioning, the provision, investigation, handling and confidentiality of whistleblowing information in the establishment.
