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Bern launches anti-corruption website

The Local
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Bern launches anti-corruption website
Page from anti-corruption website. Photo: Screenshot

Bern has announced a new internet platform for whistleblowers to anonymously report acts of suspected corruption to the police.

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The anti-corruption platform was launched on Tuesday by federal police on behalf of the Swiss attorney-general’s office.

The government said the platform was a bid to combat at the national and international levels corruption that results in “significant financial and non-financial loss” for the state, private sector and society.

Insider knowledge is a decisive factor in investigating and prosecuting corruption, which often goes undetected, federal police said in a media release.

The platform is designed to encourage informers who might otherwise be reluctant to speak out, police said.

“Informers are protected from reprisal, for example, by an employer, because the system guarantees anonymity,” according to the release.

“This reduces the psychological barrier for submitting a report.”

Anyone with information on suspect acts of corruption can send an anonymous report to law enforcement agencies through the new website.

Each report will be judged for criminal relevance before being forwarded to the appropriate police investigators.

If information refers to matters under cantonal government jurisdiction, the report will be passed on to the relevant cantonal police force, federal police said.

Police are not allowed to probe an informer’s identity without his or her permission, however the platform does allow investigators to contact the person to gather additional information and to inform the person about “further procedures”.

The platform is similar to systems already existing in Germany and Austria, where law enforcement agencies have reportedly had positive results.

For more information check: www.fighting corruption.ch

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