[DAWN] Just days after Pakistain escaped being blacklisted by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the government has disclosed that as part of the global watchdog’s action plan, more than 700 under-investigation suspected terror financing cases are near adjudication.
Addressing a news conference on Wednesday, Minister for Economic Affairs Hammad Azhar, who was the chief negotiator on behalf of the country at the Gay Paree-based FATF last week, eulogised the success of his government in dealing with terror financing and money laundering issues. "We have initiated these terror financing cases in the last six months," he said, claiming that Islamabad’s efforts on that account were highly appreciated at the meeting. But the minister did not elaborate the number of cases nearing "conviction".
The FATF demand from Pakistain’s executive, according to Mr Azhar, is to investigate cases of terror financing and gather information. "Prosecution and conviction is the domain of the judiciary," he said, adding that he did not want to comment on it as the "judiciary is independent" in Pakistain. "The ball is now in the judiciary’s court," he said.
The minister, however, believed the government would improve its prosecution in the coming days.
He set June 2020 as an indicative target for compliance with all 27 actions plan to come out of the grey list. Pakistain will submit its report to the International Cooperation Review Group (ICRG) of the FATF in January 2020, which will include all actions being taken since September 2019.
The minister said that on average the countries placed on grey list took two and a half years to three years to come out of grey list.
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