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Whistleblowing can be lifesaving

Some of them are famous, some of them not. We know the names of some, but others are left anonymous, and we will never find the heroes. Some facts were proven, and guilty participants were prosecuted. Some statements are more than controversial, and yet they are still worth our attention and a moment of thinking/analysis.

The inscription is written in white chalk on a black board (1)

Different countries, people, spheres, and cases — our goal is to understand the role of whistleblowing in shaping world policy. All the stories we've chosen are directly connected with our daily life: people decided to help the people, and that's how the whistle was blown. 

 

Katharine Gun - Great Britain

She spoke out when thousands of lives were at stake. Katharine Gun is a famous figure in the world of whistleblowers - in 2003 she leaked a classified document that pointed at the continuous negotiations between the US and Great Britain. Katharine was working as a translator of Mandarin for Government Communications Headquarters when she discovered a memo from the US.

Many planes in the sky against the background of cloudy sky

The note was asking employees of GCHQ to collect information on foreign officials who were participating in the United Nations Security Council. The goal of the email was to secure the decision of the UN to send troops to Iraq. Katharine tried to prevent an unjustified invasion and start the war. Trial and dismissal were a result of this desperate attempt to stand for human rights.

 

Satyendra Dubey – India

 

Another part of the world and a different, brave story. Satyendra Dubey was an Indian Project Manager in the Indian Engineering Service. As a prominent specialist, he noticed and reported on the financial irregularities which caused the poor quality of a highway (a part of the “Golden Quadrilateral Project”). The road was rebuilt, but Satyendra Dubey impeded the interests of the mafia – later Indian officer was assassinated on the way home.

 

Alfredo Jiménez Mota – Mexico

 

Jiménez Mota also incriminated the mafia in the especially dangerous sphere – the drug business. Young journalist and reporter, Alfredo, was highlighting issues of drug trafficking and investigating the connections of local drug cartels with governmental structures. As soon as the investigation took a severe turn, Alfredo was being followed and eventually went missing. Guilty in Alfredo's disappearance hasn't been found since 2005.

 

Informant – Malaysia

 

Herd of the elephants in the desertWe don't know the name of the hero, but this time the attempt was to save the wildlife. Elephants are regularly killed for their tusks – it poses a massive threat to the environment and natural variety. Often it's local people who cruelly kill animals for profit, and it's hard to find a perpetrator.       

Sabah Wildlife Department promised a reward for the whistleblower, and six people were finally brought to justice in Tawau. A brilliant example of how a reward can serve good purposes and accelerate the investigation, right?

 

Shuping Wang – China

 

Unacceptable and unforgivable negligence that a Chinese doctor was trying to combat. Thanks to Shuping Wang, thousands of people were saved from HIV and AIDS, even though the government acknowledged the problem too late. During the boom in commercial harvesting in the 90s, Shuping Wang discovered a disturbing number of infected people among blood donors. Commercial facilities were collecting and reselling blood samples without checking the donors. Dirty equipment, mixing of blood, and ignorance led to the rapid growth of HIV and AIDS in rural areas. Shuping Wang faced dismissal, divorce, and displacement because of her reports and activism. The epidemic risks became so obvious that eventually, the government interfered and shut down the facilities.

 

 

Dr Scott Allen and Dr. Pamela McPherson – the US

The problem of migration has been one of the most pressing in American society for years and doesn't seem to be solved in the nearest time. A call for compassion to migrants poorly represents the difficulties they face every day – that's the message that Dr. Scott Allen and Dr. Pamela McPherson were trying to deliver.

People stand and wave small American flags in a semi-dark room

Starting in 2014, physicians reported on unacceptable conditions of migrant detention in specialized centers. Finger injuries, weight loss, and lack of hygienic supplies took place at family detention facilities (and still do). Even though the physicians didn't change the situation with facilities significantly, their letters to Congress did influence the public attitude to the problem. Now both doctors fight not for the change of conditions in family detention centers but for their closure.

In all of these stories, whistleblowers were on the right side, and their efforts sooner or later made a real difference. However, informants may disclose incorrect information in some instances – that's a complex issue that also should be discussed. The only thing we know for sure is that even in the most complicated cases with no right or wrong positions, whistleblowers do an important job – draw public attention to the problem. 

 

PS: We have three more stories to share about work ethics, personal choice, and lack of evidence. More complicated than ever – a lot to think about!

Abuse and exploitation by aid workers in Haiti – here

False evidence and war manipulation in Syria – here

Genetic material from African people and work ethics – here