ARTICLE 19 GLOBAL CAMPAIGN FOR FREE EXPRESSION 3.6 Whistleblowers The Law should provide protection for whistleblowers who release classified information, if the disclosure was made in good faith and with a reasonable belief that the information was substantially true and disclosed evidence of wrongdoing. Protection for disclosure in the public interest should extend to employees who come across protected material that discloses wrongdoing, if they release the information in good faith. ARTICLE 19 has also recommended the inclusion of protection for whistleblowers in the draft freedom of information legislation which is currently before the Jordanian parliament. Wrongdoing should include the commission of a criminal offence, failure to comply with a legal obligation, a miscarriage of justice, corruption or dishonesty, or serious maladministration regarding a public body. Protection should also be granted to those who disclose information relating to a serious threat to health, safety or the environment, regardless of whether the information is linked to individual wrongdoing. Protection for whistleblowers encourages accountability in the government sector. Protecting whistleblowers is fundamental to the operation of open and accountable government and is a standard provision in freedom of information legislation in a wide range of countries. In addition, the Special Rapporteurs 2004 Declaration on Freedom of Information and Secrecy Legislation stresses the need for information ‘safety valves’ such as whistleblowers and calls for the protection of those who disclose information so long as the person acted in good faith. The role of whistleblowers in this regime is particularly important given the current lack of provision for review or declassification. Further consideration needs to be given to promote protection of whistleblowers in the face of the severe criminal sanctions within the Law which apply to those people who disclose classified information. It is a difficult balance to strike, but a significant one for the protection of basic fundamental rights. The provisions relating to the protection of whistleblowers needs to be drafted in the context of amending the provisions relating to the criminal sanctions within the Law, as outlined below at Section 3.7. In particular, the strict liability nature of the offences poses a real threat to any persons risking to speak out about classified information. Recommendation: • The Law should provide protection to whistleblowers who act in good faith and with a reasonable belief that the information was substantially true and disclosed evidence of wrongdoing. 3.7 Criminal sanctions Article 14 imposes criminal liability on “any person who has entered or attempted to enter a restricted place for the purpose of accessing secrets, items, protected documents or information that must remain secret to endure the security of the State.” The person “shall be sentenced to temporary hard labor.” This provision further states that “[i]f such an attempt is made for the benefit of a foreign State, he shall be sentences to hard labor for life. If the foreign State was an enemy, he shall be sentenced to death.” Article 15 stipulates that anyone who “steals” classified information shall be subject to hard labor for a minimum of ten years. If the information was obtained for the benefit of a foreign State, the penalty is hard labor for life. If it is an enemy foreign State, the person shall be sentenced to death. Memorandum on Jordan’s Protection of State Secrets and Documents Provisional Law No. (50) for the Year 1971ARTICLE 19, London, 2005 – Index Number: LAW/2005/1205 - 15 -