Despite looming FATF deadlines, Pakistan yet to curb terror financing

With deadlines looming next month, Pakistan is yet to comply with 13 conditions out of the 27-point Action Plan of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) including curbing terror financing, enforcement of the laws against the proscribed organisations and improving the legal systems.

Pakistan has been on the FATF grey list since June 2018.

Pakistan Financial Monitoring Unit director-general Lubna Farooq told the National Assembly Standing Committee on Finance on Tuesday that the country is still fully compliant on 14 out of the 27-point Action Plan and said it will have to submit an implementation report on the remaining points in the next eight days, reported Express Tribune

According to Dawn, Islamabad also has to comply with 30 recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). The committee expressed serious concern over the non-serious attitude of the government to settle matters relating to the FATF.

The Imran Khan-led government on Tuesday came under severe criticism from the National Assembly's Standing Committee on Finance and Revenue led by MNA Faiz Ullah of the PTI for wasting precious time of the nation without making tangible progress.

She said Pakistan would submit its progress report on the FATF recommendations by August 6 while the submission deadline for Asia Pacific Group (APG) -- a regional affiliate of FATF - is September 30 as the country was also under review by the APG. She said Pakistan will complete required legislation by August 15.

The implementation report will be sent to the FATF by August 6, the DG said.

Pakistan is in the grey list since June 2018 and the government had given a final warning in February to complete the remaining action points by June 2020. The FATF extended the June deadline to September due to spread of coronavirus that disrupted the FATF plenary meetings.

The meeting of the Standing Committee on Finance had been convened to approve three-FATF related bills.

"The parliamentary committee has to approve three FATF-related bills before August 6, or else Pakistan cannot exit the grey list," Farogh Nasim, the federal minister for law, said after the legislative committee meeting.

The three bills are Anti Money Laundering, Limited Liability Partnership and Companies Bill.

The 13 conditions that remain unimplemented are related to curbing terror financing, enforcement of the laws against the proscribed organisations and improving the legal systems, Express Tribune reported.

Pakistan will have to demonstrate the effectiveness of sanctions including remedial actions to curb terrorist financing in the country; it will have to ensure improved effectiveness for terror financing of financial institutions with particular to banned outfits. It is yet to take actions against illegal Money or Value Transfer Services (MVTS) such as Hundi-Hawala.

Pakistan will have to place sanction regime against cash couriers. Pakistan will have to ensure logical conclusion from ongoing terror financing investigation of law enforcing agencies (LEAs) against banned outfits and proscribed persons. Pakistani authorities will have to ensure international cooperation based investigations and convictions against banned organisations and proscribed persons.

Seizure of properties of banned terror outfits and proscribed persons is another unfinished agenda. The conversion of madrassas to schools and health units into official formations is also needed to be demonstrated.