– to check on legal reforms to prevent money laundering, financing of terrorism

By Svetlana Marshall

A high-profile team from FATF, the inter-governmental body which promotes effective implementation of legal, regulatory and operational measures to fight money laundering, terrorist financing and other threats to the integrity of the international financial system, is Guyana to check on reforms here.

The team visiting Guyana is from International Co-operation Review Group (ICRG) of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

They are particularly interested in the implementation of Guyana’s updated laws against money laundering and the financing of terrorism, and other reforms FATF had set out.

The team includes Calvin Wilson, Executive Director of the Caribbean arm of FATF; Americas Regional Review Group (ARRG) Assessor Gonzalo Gonzalez de Lara; FATF’s Senior Policy Analyst Kevin Vandergrift; and CFATF’s Financial Advisor Roger Hernandez.

They will seek to verify whether Guyana has introduced the reforms recommended in the Action Plan agreed between the FATF and the Guyanese Government.

Additionally, the team will determine whether there is a political commitment to sustain the reforms.

On Wednesday, the team first met with the Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister Basil Williams and his Compliance Team, which included Acting Director of the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) Alicia Williams; Deputy Chief Parliamentary Counsel Charles Fung-a-Fat and Senior Parliamentary Counsel Joan Bond. Following that meeting, they visited a number of institutions, organisations and agencies.

“The team is here to inspect the various agencies that are involved – the supervisory agencies, the reporting agencies and other bodies like the co-op unions, cambios, money transfer agencies, in addition to banks.

“…the whole gamut has been captured by the Action Plan in relation to these entities,” Minister Williams told reporters shortly after his early morning meeting with the ICRG members.

Officials of the FIU, the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) and the Bank of Guyana are also expected to meet with the experts.

“They are here to see that they are observing the compliance standards that FATF requires,” he further added.

The Legal Affairs Minister said he was confident that Guyana would be recognized as meeting the requirement, since the Colaition Government has made significant strides since taking office in May 2015.
“Don’t forget that within a year of coming into Government we have satisfied all of the recommendations in the Action Plan; we have also satisfied the recommendations in the follow up report under the CFATF,” Minister Williams said.

The Opposition People’s Progressive Party (PPP) had expressed its intention to meet the team to raise a number of concerns. But the Legal Affairs Minister said the team’s objectives are clear – to verify whether Guyana has introduced the reforms recommended in the Action Plan and to determine whether there is a political commitment to sustain the reforms.

He contended that while in Government, the PPP did little or nothing to comply with the standards established by FATF and CFATF.

“As you would know, (under) the last Administration there was no political will; nothing was ever done from 2000 up to the time that we took office; no one was ever charged, no one was ever investigated, no one was ever taken to court,” Minister Williams contended.

He said, however, under his watch the compliance team which also includes the Chief Parliamentary Counsel Cecil Dhurjon has worked tirelessly to bring Guyana on par with the FATF/CFATF requirements.

“Those members of the drafting division are world-beaters because they have more or less earned the kudos of the ARRG and the ICRG because of the work that they have done in implementing legislation,” Minister posited while adding that the “(ARRG and ICRG) had marveled at the fact that we were able to get four pieces of legislation through our Parliament within one year – and legislation that has been accepted by FATF/ CFATF.”

Currently, Guyana has an Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) Act in place, along with other related legislation governing supervisory bodies, financial institutions, law enforcement, and foreign affairs.

The National Assembly in May last passed the AML/CFT (Amendment) Bill 2016. In 2015, it had also passed the Anti-Terrorism and Terrorist Related Activities Bill; the AML/CFT (Amendment) Bill Nos. 1 and 2; and the AML/CFT Regulations, all in keeping with recommendations made by FATF and CFATF.

The result of the on-site visit will be on the agenda at the next FATF Plenary meeting schedule to take place in Paris in October. Minister Williams, however, in underscoring the importance of having Guyana satisfy the onsite visit, stated clearly that once the requirements are met, a motion will be moved during the October Plenary to have Guyana exit the FATF Review List. The country, he said, must first exit FATF’s review list before exiting the CFATF list.