Pak in FTAF enhanced blacklist: In another setback to Pakistan, the country has been put in an “enhanced blacklist” by global financial watchdog Financial Action Task Force’s Asia-Pacific division for its failure to meet global standards, it is learnt.
Following this, Islamabad now needs to focus on avoiding the blacklist in October, when the 15-month timeline on the FATF’s 27-point action plan ends.
The Financial Action Task Force’s Asia-Pacific group has also found Pakistan non-compliant on 32 of the 40 parameters on money-laundering and terror financing.
Despite its efforts, Pakistan’s 10-member delegation led by its central bank chief could not convince the 41-member plenary to upgrade it on any parameter.
India has, in the past, urged the FATF to put Pakistan on a blacklist of countries that fail to meet international standards in stopping terror funding following the listing of Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar as a global terrorist by the United Nations.
Several FATF members have also raised the issue of no cases being registered against Hafiz Saeed and Azhar Masood. Although Pakistan contends that it has done enough by seizing over 700 properties belonging to the Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jamaat-ud-Daawa, Falah-i-Insaniyat Foundation and the Jaish-e-Mohammed, India and other FATF members have pointed out that seizures do not necessarily indicate compliance.
If Pakistan continues to remain in the “grey list”, it would risk being downgraded by the International Monetary Fund, World Bank and Asian Development Bank, besides facing negative assessments by credit rating agencies such as Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s and Fitch.
