A case of a teacher being penalized for reporting an issue has once again brought the topic of protecting whistleblowers to the fore. A commentator argued that the laws should be more specific and stronger in this regard, and a social environment encouraging whistleblowing should be developed.
On May 25, He Siyun, then a teacher at an elementary school in southwestern China’s Guangxi Province, reported to two school officials that a dozen school girls had been subject to indecent acts by a male teacher at an after-school care center and urged that the act be reported to the police. The proposal was refused because, the school officials said, it was a decision to be made by the headmaster. Mr He informed the head of the county education bureau head, also to no avail. Mr He reported the matter to the police next day. Shortly after, Mr He had to leave his job. In September, the county government announced that He was dismissed because his teaching certificate was found to be invalid, reported
China Women’s Daily on September 7.
Although further investigation is needed, the case has drawn attention and sympathy from the public. Whistleblowers play an important role in providing leads on fighting crimes, and Chinese law stresses that people have both the rights and obligations to report details about crimes or suspects. But the law falls short on how to protect the informers’ rights and interests, and most stipulations on this are scattered in laws and legal interpretations, thus offering limited protection. There have been repeated cases where informers suffered retaliations, which has led many potential informers to choose not to report, wrote commentator Gao Yang in an article for the Procuratorial Daily.
To change that, more efforts should be made to reform the legal system, including smoothing out the reporting channels, keeping whistleblowers safe and their identities hidden, and giving them rewards. The government should make whistleblowing more acceptable and recognized among the public, and cultivate a social atmosphere where people have the will and courage to blow the whistle, Gao said.