Lithuanian civil servants obligated to report known cases of corruption

VILNIUS - Civil servants in Lithuania are obligated to report known cases of corruption to the Special Investigation Service (STT), prosecutors or other pre-trial investigation bodies under new provisions in the Law on Corruption Prevention in place since January 1. 

Ruta Kaziliunaite, head of the Corruption Prevention Department at STT, says civil servants must report known cases of corruption if they have indisputable evidence of such activity.

This obligation does not apply only if an act of corruption was committed by one's family member or other relative. 

"If there is a suspicion that a criminal act might have been committed and there is reasonable evidence to believe so, we encourage (everyone) not to hesitate to contact law-enforcement bodies so that they could do their job and confirm or dispel these suspicions," she told BNS. 

A civil servant who fails to report a known case of corruption may face a penalty ranging from a verbal warning to being barred from public service employment.