Deputy Ombudswoman Dijana Kesonja participated in a conference dedicated to analyzing the state of the Croatian judiciary concerning criminal proceedings involving corruption. The event took place on Tuesday, March 25, 2025, at the Regional Center of the Judicial Academy in Osijek, organized by the Center for Peace, Nonviolence, and Human Rights Osijek.
During the discussion, Deputy Kesonja highlighted the role of the institution of the Ombudswoman, particularly its mandate to protect whistleblowers, which is closely tied to anti-corruption efforts. She emphasized that the institution’s primary role is to safeguard the identity of whistleblowers who use the external reporting channel, while forwarding reports of irregularities to the competent authorities for action.
The Ombudswoman examines each individual report to take necessary actions within her jurisdiction, including investigating employers in cases where whistleblowers may face retaliation for reporting misconduct.
Furthermore, Deputy Kesonja pointed out that the Ombudswoman monitors the implementation of the Whistleblower Protection Act, including internal reporting procedures, cases of public disclosure (most commonly through the media), and case-law related to whistleblower protection. She stressed the crucial role of the media in raising public awareness about the importance of reporting irregularities, even though not all cases covered by the media fall within the scope of the Whistleblower Protection Act.
She also noted that whistleblowing is more common among public sector employees and that internal reporting channels are improving. However, confidential persons responsible for handling internal reports within organizations still face challenges in their work. For instance, they are sometimes not provided with adequate working conditions or face other obstacles, and in some cases, they even experience retaliation themselves. Additionally, some employers fail to make information about the reporting process and the designated confidential person easily accessible to all employees.
Discussing other challenges related to whistleblowing, Deputy Kesonja pointed out that there is still a lack of public understanding of the topic. She emphasized the need for further education on the Whistleblower Protection Act, which could also be refined to ensure more effective protection for whistleblowers. Furthermore, some legal proceedings for whistleblower protection are excessively lengthy, and certain authorities responsible for investigating reports of irregularities are slow to act. She stressed the importance of ensuring that whistleblowers receive timely feedback on the handling of their reports and that, when misconduct is confirmed, it is promptly addressed and those responsible are adequately sanctioned.
Prior to the discussion, Natalija Havelka, Executive Director of the Osijek Center for Peace, presented the results of the research study “Analysis of Judicial Practice in Criminal Cases Involving Corruption”.
In addition to Deputy Kesonja, the discussion featured Davor Mitrović from the County Court, Igor Vuletić from the Faculty of Law at the University of Osijek, Adrijana Cvrtila from the association Pomak, Vanja Mladineo from the Miko Tripalo Center, Oriana Ivković Novokmet from GONG, and Drago Ačimović.