In FATF web

FATF acknowledges Pakistan's progress but expects the country 'to do more'

The warning from the FAFT sounds serious. A statement issued by the global anti-money laundering watchdog in Paris yesterday “strongly urges Pakistan to swiftly complete its full action plan by February 2020” and if “significant and sustainable progress not be made across the full range of its action plan by the next Plenary [session], the FATF will take action.” So now it is a four-month lifeline for Pakistan to come completely clean on the 27 items on which action is sought by the 39-member inter-governmental orgainsation or else fall into a blacklist which also comprises the likes of Iran and North Korea, and which means global economic sanctions.

Caught in the FATF web since June 2018, Pakistan has taken several major steps in recent times in line with the taskforce’s action plan — like proscribing several militant groups and seizing their assets as well as ensuring that foreign currency transactions in the country are not left undocumented. But the country is still told to ‘do more’ to ensure that there is no room for money laundering and terror financing. The FATF does acknowledge “the progress Pakistan has made towards improving its AML/CFT regime”, but the acknowledgment only seems to have come as part of the niceties to balance out the concerns expressed. In effect, the FATF has made it pretty clear that “Pakistan has only largely addressed five of 27 action items, with varying levels of progress made on the rest of the action plan”.

That Pakistan’s FATF woes are far more political than financial in nature is pretty evident. It is one of the several ways for the world powers to keep Pakistan under pressure in pursuit of their diplomatic goals. Pakistan is well aware of the thickening global plot, and is expected to take calculated steps ahead. So it’s time for our leadership to move on with all the care and caution.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 20^th, 2019.

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