Sutaj Estok: Draft Bill on Whistleblowers Protection Office Not Act of Revenge

Bratislava, 4 December (TASR) - Interior Minister Matus Sutaj Estok (Voice-SD) on Thursday presented in Parliament the draft bill on the Crime Victim and Whistleblowers Protection Office, rejecting claims that this is an act of revenge while stating that revenge was taking place in the period between 2020 to 2023, TASR reported on the same day. Currently at its second reading, the proposal followed expert discussions among the Interior Ministry, the Justice Ministry and the Government Office, said Sutaj Estok, asking "whether it makes sense for a small country like Slovakia to have two parallel authorities handling a similar agenda". "It's economical to have this agenda under a single office," said Sutaj Estok, According to him, the government is introducing the change to protect genuine victims and genuine whistleblowers more effectively and fairly. "Protection is not being reduced; it's being clarified in more detail," he added, stating that the new regulation will be in line with European legislation. Until now, employers have had no tool to defend themselves with if the reasons for protection ceased to exist or have never been proven, while the new legislation is aimed at establishing a balance between the rights of whistleblowers and those of employers, said Sutaj Estok. He again criticised the group of police officers centred around investigator Jan Curilla, saying he doesn't want the defendants to hide behind the status of protected whistleblowers. "If an institution for such protection becomes a bunker for the people who are accused, that's not the rule of law, but a parody of the rule of law," he stated. MPs will have an opportunity to ask government members their questions on Thursday. jrg/df