The Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law (“RWI“) has a whistleblower function where partners and/or employees can report suspicions of misconduct where there is a public interest in the information being disclosed.
What does the whistleblower function mean?
The whistleblower function is aimed at all our partners and/or employees at RWI. The same applies to persons who apply for work at RWI and persons who work for subcontractors and contractors to the extent that their work is directed towards or carried out on behalf of RWI.
What can the report relate to?
A report may concern suspicions of or information about irregularities at RWI that there is a public interest in. This may concern suspicions of serious irregularities, violations of the law or other misconduct in the workplace. The whistleblower function can be used when ordinary reporting channels do not work and there is a legitimate interest of the public that the information is disclosed.
The report may, for example, be about serious security deficiencies in the business, serious misconduct, improper use of labour, suspicion of fraud or other financial crime such as bribery or corruption, unauthorized leakage of information, conflict of interest or other irregularities linked to the business.
Who processes the report?
When a report is received, the external party the Swedish Law Firm (Advokatfirman) Lindahl will make an initial assessment as to whether the case should be handled within the framework of the whistleblower function. It is then handed over to RWI Management. The notifier will receive feedback, if contact information is provided.
Is it possible to report anonymously?
If you provide contact information, name, address, telephone number or email address, it is easier for the whistleblower function to get in touch for additional information if necessary, but you can choose to remain anonymous by not providing any information that reveals your own identity.
How is a report made?
If you wish to make a report of misconduct, you can do so in writing, orally or at a physical meeting by contacting attorney Mikael Mellberg at the Swedish Law Firm (Advokatfirman) Lindahl, who has the following contact information:
Phone: 072-388 10 21
Phone hours: weekdays 08.00 – 16.30
E-mail: mikael.mellberg@lindahl.se
Postal address: Advokatfirman Lindahl KB
Attn: Lawyer Mikael Mellberg
Box 11911, 404 39 Göteborg
Visiting address: Södra Hamngatan 37-41, 411 06 Göteborg
Once a report has been submitted, you will receive a confirmation within seven days that the report has been received. Keep in mind that your report must contain information about who/which persons or circumstances the report relates to and at what time(s) the reported event(s) occurred.
External reporting channels
The whistleblower function is an internal reporting channel for RWI. You can also choose to report to external reporting channels. You do not need to have reported internally to be allowed to turn externally. To report externally, we refer you to contact the relevant authorities. For information on which authorities these are, please refer to the Swedish Work Environment Authority, which is the supervisory authority.
Freedom of information
The Whistleblower Act does not restrict protection that applies by law, ordinance or on other grounds. The Act is a complement to the freedom of information and procurement enshrined in the Constitution. These rights are stipulated in the Freedom of the Press Act and the Fundamental Law on Freedom of Expression. In simple terms, freedom of information means that anyone can report information to certain media with a view to making it public. Freedom of procurement means, among other things, that everyone has the right to procure information for the purpose of disclosing it within the framework of their freedom of disclosure.
An authority or other public body may not investigate informants (prohibition of investigation) nor intervene against anyone for having used their freedom of the press or freedom of expression or participated in such use (prohibition of reprisals). In some cases, it is not allowed to communicate and publish information. Among other things, when this constitutes certain crimes directed against the state or breaches of certain professional secrecy obligations in the cases specified in the Public Access to Information and Secrecy Act. For example, due to reservations or confidentiality provisions for information within the social services and educational activities. Furthermore, it is not permissible to misdisclose or publish an official document that is not accessible to all, or to provide such a document in breach of a reservation made by an authority at the time of disclosure of the document, where the act is intentional. Additional provisions that restrict the right to communicate and publish information are also found in statutes other than the Public Access to Information and Secrecy Act.
