OTTAWA Canada is at the bottom of an international ranking of countries with whistleblower protection, lagging behind Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Botswana.

A report released Tuesday by the U.S.-based Government Accountability Project and the U.K.-based International Bar Association surveyed whistleblowing frameworks in 37 countries with such laws to determine whether they are actually working.

What they found is that they are not.

Too often the rights that look impressive on paper are only a mirage of protection in practice, the studys six-lead authors said.

Either they do not make a difference, or in some cases, make whistleblowing more dangerous.

The picture is especially bleak in Canada, which together with Lebanon and Norway, tied for the worlds weakest whistleblower protection laws. Canadas Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act and its track record met only one of 20 criteria. The United States, Australia and the European Unions Whistleblower Protection Directive tied for having the best record, with 16 out of 20 criteria fulfilled. Other top countries included Serbia and Ireland, with 15 out of 20 each, and Namibia, with 14.

The criteria included such matters as how widespread the law was, whether it protected whistleblowers identity, or protected them against a full scope of harassment, whether it shielded them from gag orders, and offered them genuine judicial process, with access to court and timely decisions, and coverage for legal fees and costs.