LEAs’ action against terror networks: FATF body asks Pakistan to share draft policy

ISLAMABAD: Asia Pacific Group (APG) — a regional body of Financial Action Task Force (FATF) — has asked Pakistan to share with it draft policy for devising and implementing a unified policy for all federal and provincial law enforcement agencies (LEAs) to conduct inquiries against terrorist networks and their members.

The APG has also asked Pakistan to share details of terror financing cases whether it’s done through domestic or trans nationals provision, collection of funds, movement or use of funds, terror financing through cash smuggling, through hundi/hawala, through misuse of Non- Profit Organization (NPO), through narcotics trafficking or through proceeds of smuggling including natural resources (from Afghanistan and other places).

The report has pointed out that lack of coordination has surfaced as one of major stumbling blocks to implementing the FATF recommendations to combat money laundering and terror financing in Pakistan.

Pakistan’s progress report on FATF Action Plan and its compliance report for October 2018 states that Islamabad was asked to provide a copy of draft policy for demonstrating that it was proactively initiating financial inquiries and investigation of terrorist groups and their members and second to conduct reactive parallel financial inquiries and possible investigation a part of every terrorism investigation.

“Once established, the APG has also demanded of providing information that the policy is being implemented by the LEAs,” the report further states.

The joint group in performance report has commented that the CTD has been tasked with establishing a policy for the LEAs for parallel inquiries or investigation with every terrorism investigations. Pakistan will need to provide a draft of the policy and then it will be implemented. The CTD has distributed a document titled broad parameters of policy for LEAs to all on September 5, 2018.

It further requires the LEAs to cooperate with each other in such investigations and apply the relevant terror financing (TF) provision in law. The joint working group will review the document in its next meeting to determine whether this is sufficient evidence in order to meet this action item.

The Nacta told the APG mission that three provinces, including Punjab, KP and Sindh, had registered 172 cases of terror financing since 2015 and convicted only 50 persons, In Punjab, 106 cases were registered and 144 people arrested out of which 45 were convicted and Rs1,6,92,000 money was recovered.

In KP, 45 cases were registered and 80 people got arrested out of which three were convicted and the recovered money stood at just Rs1,875,060.

In Sindh, 12 cases were registered and 21 people got arrested out of which only two got convicted but the report did not share the recovered amount.

Now the APG has asked Pakistan to provide to it information on the specific offense of convicted persons and whether any funds had been recovered from Sindh. The Nacta further told the APG mission that visited Pakistan last month that the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) had been tasked with preparing a comprehensive policy for proactive initiation of financial inquiries and investigation against terrorist groups.

At present, the provincial CTDs are following SOPs for conducting parallel financial investigation in terror financing. The SOPs provide a step-wise approach as to how the terror financing investigations should be conducted and money trails identified. “A comprehensive guidance has been issued by Financial Monitoring Unit/Ministry of Finance for the LEAs and other authorities to implement the requirement of action plan item,” stated the Nacta response in performance review report.