– says AG in response to Harmon’s negative characterisation of AML/CFT Bill
A PARTNERSHIP for National Unity (APNU) front-bencher Joseph Harmon said in a media report on Tuesday that some of the measures in the current Anti-Money Laundering & Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) Bill saw the possibility of rights related to searches and seizures being violated. He added that the “even more draconian measures” in place would be a threat to certain liberties.

But Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Anil Nandlall, rejected the negative characterisation of the AML/CFT Bill, and said, “I will be the first, as the subject minister, I am the first person to have stated publicly that the bill and the principal act are draconian pieces of legislation.

“In fact, I have described it as sui generis, but the fact is that that is the nature of this type of law.

“Money laundering, the proceeds of crime and terrorism, the mischief which the bill addresses, are extraordinary criminal conduct which has had extraordinary impact on every part of the world where they manifest themselves. They have led to the deaths of thousands and destroyed the lives of hundreds of thousands of people worldwide.

“Therefore, such extraordinary ills require extraordinary laws and penalties to tackle them. That is the philosophy which inspires and informs this legislation,” the Attorney General stated.

Nandlall said legislation of this type exists in “every civilised” country in the world, including the First World. “Their existence is for the public good. At different intervals, every country would have to pass laws of this type to confront the reality facing the society,” he said.

Nandlall noted that over 100 years ago, countries such as Guyana gave powers such as arrest, search and seizure of private property to police officers. Over 100 years ago, similar powers were given to tax officers.

He explained that all the AML/CFT Bill seeks to do is give similar powers to a new category of persons in order to better equip them to combat money laundering and terrorism.

“This piece of legislation is part of the laws of the entire Caribbean and in most countries of the English-speaking Commonwealth. We are doing nothing new and novel in Guyana by promulgating this bill,” the AG stressed.

CONSULTING WITH STAKEHOLDERS
The Attorney General also responded to Harmon’s contention over the extent of stakeholder consultation.
The APNU Member of Parliament (MP) claimed that Nandlall “would have been bandying the idea that the amendments were prepared by the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF)”, and as such there were no sessions with stakeholders, such as the Bankers Association, to find out how it would affect them.

HARMON WRONG
The AG said, “Mr. Harmon is absolutely wrong in his contentions that the AML/CFT was prepared by the CFATF, and that there was no consultation with stakeholders.

“Firstly, the bill was never prepared by CFATF. The bill was crafted by us in Guyana, based upon recommendations made by CFATF to Guyana in their effort to correct certain deficiencies which they identified existed in the legal architecture of our AML/CFT regime.”

He made it clear that the CFATF’s role in the presentation of the bill to the National Assembly was limited to approving it as meeting their requirements.

Nandlall said, “As regards this Bill, a team from CFATF visited Guyana in February/March 2013 and met and consulted with several stakeholders, including the Head of the Presidential Secretariat, the Attorney General, the Minister of Finance, the Guyana Revenue Authority, the Central Bank, and various organs and agencies in the private sector.

“In any event, the private sector has, on innumerable occasions, expressed its unequivocal and unconditional support for this bill. Therefore, it is difficult to understand the point Mr. Harmon is trying to make.

“In fact, in their assessment of the bill, the person assigned by CFATF to assess Guyana, in his report to the CFATF meeting in Freeport, Bahamas, opined that the bill captures 90 per cent of the recommendations which are to be implemented by Guyana.”

The Attorney General made it clear that the principal act spent over two years in a Special Select Committee – meetings that were attended by stakeholders who made contributions. “I was a member of that committee, and I speak from personal experience. Mr. Harmon was not yet a Member of Parliament,” he stressed.

Nandlall pointed out that the “utterances” emanating from the Opposition with respect to the AML/CFT Bill are interesting, considering the conspicuous absence of what contributions they have to make to the bill.

He said, “You will recall (that) since March 2013, when the bill was first laid in the National Assembly, the Opposition claimed that they have a contribution to make to this bill, and that they want a “good bill”. Well, this bill has been in the National Assembly for the last 11 months. It was debated more than two times on the floor of the National Assembly.
It spent several months in two select committees. During all of this, the nation is yet to hear what contributions the Opposition wish to make to this bill.

“Their contribution must be one of the greatest guarded secret in this country,” the minister said.

The National Assembly meets on Monday, February 10, and MPs are expected to consider the report of the Parliamentary Select Committee reviewing the AML/CFT Bill, as well as the bill itself for passage.

On Thursday, February 13, the France-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF) is expected to meet, at which time Guyana could qualify for the International Cooperation Review Group’s (ICRG) evaluation.

CFATF has already designated Guyana as a country with strategic anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism deficiencies, that have not made sufficient progress in addressing the deficiencies, and have not complied with its Action Plan developed with CFATF to address these deficiencies.

The body is expected to review Guyana’s position at its next meeting in May 2014.