International Anti-Corruption Day

The International Anti-Corruption Day has been observed on 9 December since 2003, when the UN General Assembly adopted the Convention against Corruption in the Mexican city of Merida

This year marks the 22nd anniversary of the UN Convention against Corruption, which has greatly contributed to the commitment of States Parties to the continuous prevention of and fight against corruption.

Although there is no universally accepted definition of corruption, in a broad sense it can be defined as any deviation from the established norms, i.e. as abuse of public or official authority in order to achieve personal or related persons' gains, be it in the public or private sector.
 
New legislative changes strengthen whistle-blower protection

Recently, amendments to a package of judicial laws were passed in the Croatian Parliament, including the Act on the Protection of Persons who Report Irregularities.

‘The Act on the Protection of Persons who Report Irregularities is being amended primarily for the purpose of strengthening the protection of persons who report irregularities, of making their role, which is socially very important, even stronger’, Minister Habijan pointed out during the parliamentary debate.

The proposed amendments specify the substantive scope of the Act, expressly stipulating that the protection also applies to persons who report irregularities related to the offences against the economy, offences against official duty and offences of misappropriation and bribery of Members under the Criminal Code.

Another novelty is that persons who report irregularities directly to the police or a state attorney's office are entitled to protection under the same conditions as persons who report through the external channel i.e. the ombudsperson.

The legislative amendments also introduced new time limits in judicial protection proceedings, including a time limit of 15 days for a response to the action, while the hearing must take place within 30 days of receipt of the response. It also sets a time limit of six months for the completion of the first-instance proceedings and a time limit of 30 days for deciding on an appeal brought against a decision of the first-instance court. 

At the same time, the upper limit of misdemeanour penalties for retaliation against the reporting person was increased - to a maximum of EUR 100,000 for legal persons, EUR 15,000 for sole proprietors and EUR 6,000 for natural persons.
 
Lobbying Act - a major step forward in combating corruption

‘From the beginning of Croatia’s independence, we had this one area that was left completely undefined. This cast a certain shadow on this type of activity or services, and created the impression in the public and the media that such services included some sort of illegal acts or corruption. In order to demystify the services and include them in the normative and legal framework, it was necessary to adopt this Act’, said Minister Habijan on the Lobbying Act in a Croatian Radio programme.

The law defines lobbying, lobbyists, lobbied persons and beneficiaries of lobbying. Furthermore, the Register of Lobbyists was introduced, requirements for lobbyists and sanctions for violations of the normative framework, and the adoption of the Act itself represents a major step forward in the fight against corruption.

The requirements for registration in the Register of Lobbyists are that that the person has not been convicted by a valid final decision of criminal offences stipulated by the Act and, for natural persons, legal adulthood.

Lobbyists who fail to register are subject to sanctions, i.e. pecuniary fines, from 500 to 5,000 euros for a natural person, and from 2,000 to 20,000 euros for a legal person. 

Croatia achieved a significant strategic goal in its anti-corruption efforts by joining the OECD Working Group on Bribery in International Business Transactions.

This was preceded by numerous steps, the first of which was accession to the Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions, to which the Republic of Croatia became a party on 22 November 2022.

The Convention entered into force in Croatia on 21 January 2024.
 
Fighting corruption - a shared responsibility

In recent years, the Ministry of Justice, Public Administration and Digital Transformation has strengthened the institutional framework for the fight against corruption. In addition to the adoption of new laws, a national campaign entitled ‘Initiate change - Report corruption’ was launched, aimed at informing and educating citizens about the harmfulness of corruption, the possibilities of reporting irregularities and the protection of whistle-blowers, thus encouraging active public participation in the fight against corruption.

Through the work of the Anti-Corruption Council, this Ministry continuously monitors the implementation of strategic documents such as the Anti-Corruption Strategy 2021-2030, and develops accompanying action plans such as the Action Plan 2025-2027, which contain measures aimed at enhancing the transparency of public administration, preventing conflict of interest and strengthening the integrity of public bodies.

The fight against corruption requires the involvement of government institutions, the private sector as well as citizens.

Implementation of the legislative framework, transparency, education, mechanisms for reporting irregularities and for the protection of reporting persons, and international cooperation are the foundation of future progress in combating corruption.

On the International Anti-Corruption Day, we recall that integrity is the foundation of trust, and institutional change becomes effective only when citizens support it with their active participation.

News