In some parts of the world, it is a crime not to report a crime. If that is the case, wouldn't everyone who fails to whistle-blow be guilty of a crime?
To quote an example, here is what Section 202 of Penal Code of Singapore says.
https://www.arlc.com.sg/failure-to-report-a-crime
In Singapore, there are two potentially applicable laws. Under Penal Code 1871 §202,
Whoever, knowing or having reason to believe that an offence has been committed, intentionally omits to give any information respecting that offence which he is legally bound to give, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 6 months, or with fine, or with both.
§48 says that
a person is said to be “legally bound to do” whatever it is illegal or unlawful in him to omit.
In the relevant chapter (11), you find a provision legally binding persons, in the context of giving evidence that
Whoever, being legally bound by an oath, or by any express provision of law to state the truth, or being bound by law to make a declaration upon any subject, makes any statement which is false, and which he either knows or believes to be false, or does not believe to be true, is said to give false evidence.
This essentially means that when being officially interrogated, you must tell the whole truth. There may be some other circumstances where a person is statutorily obligated to "volunteer" information (i.e. a person may be a mandatory reporter because they work as a teacher and are obligated to report suspected criminal activity). Ordinarily, you are not legally bound to volunteer a report that you saw a person cheating on an exam or falsifying a document.
The second relevant provision of Singapore law is §204a, which says that
Whoever does an act that has a tendency to obstruct, prevent, pervert or defeat the course of justice — (a) knowing that the act is likely to obstruct, prevent, pervert or defeat the course of justice; or (b) intending to obstruct, prevent, pervert or defeat the course of justice, shall be guilty of an offence and shall on conviction be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 7 years, or with fine, or with both.
This means that you cannot destroy evidence, and also means that you cannot send WhatsApp messages alerting criminals to a police investigation. This section criminalizes actions, not inactions.
Whoever, knowing or having reason to believe that an offence has been committed, intentionally omits to give any information respecting that offence which he is legally bound to give, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 6 months, or with fine, or with both.
I've added emphasis to the key words.
It is not the case that everyone is always legally bound to give information about offences being committed. The quoted section applies only where such an obligation exists.
It may or may not exist.
In Germany there is §138 StGB, Nichtanzeige geplanter Straftaten. It applies to planned crimes which the accuses learns about at a time when they could still be prevented, and it applies only to enumerated lists of crimes. The following sections of the law further qualify this, with exceptions e.g. for the clergy, but also for people who prevent the crime without reporting it ("talking the perpetrator out of a bad idea before it happens").
s316 of the Crimes Act 1900 makes it a crime for an adult who knows or believes that they have information that will be material in the apprehension or conviction of a person who has committed a serious indictable offence to not report it without reasonable excuse. S316A is a similar crime with respect to child abuse.
This applies to everyone and can capture people who fail to “whistle-blow”.
However, this crime is rarely prosecuted and is typically used as an add-on catch-all charge against organised crime members. Proving a s316 offence necessarily requires that the non-reported crime has already been proved in court. That’s the only way that it becomes known that what you failed to report was something you should have reported.
It has been recommended that this provision be abolished numerous times since the turn of this century, but it hasn’t been. There is no equivalent provision in Commonwealth law or the law of any other state or territory.
