Money laundering as dangerous as terrorism<\/p>\n
Rita A.Widiadana, The Jakarta Post, Nusa Dua, Bali<\/p>\n
Indonesian Minister of Foreign Affairs Hassan Wirayuda
\nstressed on Tuesday a deadly link between money laundering and
\nthe financing of terrorism, and concluded that both must be
\neradicated along with terrorism itself.<\/p>\n
Speaking at the opening of the two-day international
\nconference on money laundering at the Bali International
\nConvention Center (BICC), the minister added that long before it
\nwas linked to terrorism, money laundering had already been
\nregarded as one of the most pernicious forms of economic crimes
\nbecause of its connection to transnational crime.<\/p>\n
\"Money that is successfully laundered is invariably used to
\nfinance the expansion of the dirty business that produced it,\"
\nHassan said, adding that in the long run, unabated money
\nlaundering has the effect of destabilizing the national economy
\nand contributing to political instability and to the breakdown of
\npublic order.<\/p>\n
\"As long as money can be laundered, terrorism can be financed
\nand carried out to kill more innocents and wreak havoc on our
\nlives,\" he asserted.<\/p>\n
Despite the fact that money laundering had been detected a
\nlong time ago, Indonesia passed a law only this year to eradicate
\nthe crime.<\/p>\n
Indonesia and Australia are co-hosting the conference, which
\nis aimed at augmenting and contributing to the existing
\ninitiatives being undertaken at regional and international levels
\nagainst money laundering.<\/p>\n
The co-hosting of this conference highlights the continuing
\ncommitment of the two countries to combat financing terrorism and
\nmoney laundering in the region.<\/p>\n
The two-day meeting was officially opened by Australian
\nJustice Minister Chris Ellison and Indonesian foreign minister
\nHassan Wirayuda.<\/p>\n
The conference also drew high-level representatives from the
\ngovernments, international organizations and the private sectors
\nof 33 countries from Asia and the Pacific Rim, including
\nAustralia, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Canada, China, East
\nTimor, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, the
\nPhilippines, Singapore, the Solomon Islands, Thailand and the
\nUnited States. International organizations represented at the
\nconference included the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank,
\nthe International Monetary Fund, the Islamic Development Bank,
\nthe United Nations Development Program and the European
\nCommission.<\/p>\n
Hassan said that transnational organized crimes had become so
\nmethodical, so dependent on modern science and technology, and so
\nambitious in their ill intentions that they could not possibly
\noperate without sizable logistics.<\/p>\n
\"Without massive logistics, they cannot possibly maintain
\ntheir shadowy network of cells and they cannot run from one
\nhideout to another in a bid to outrun the long arm of the law,\"
\nhe noted.<\/p>\n
For example, investigations into the Bali bombings have
\nindicated that around US$30,000 was made available to terrorists
\nto carry out their horrific attacks.<\/p>\n
\"This money is surely worth nothing if we compare it to the
\ndevastating effects that it instigates. I am not only talking
\nabout the grave loss of lives to the families of the victims,
\nwhich is beyond any measure, but also to the billions of dollar
\nlosses resulting from the bombing's negative economic impacts,\"
\nhe maintained.<\/p>\n
The first day of the conference covered overviews of
\nparticipating countries' efforts in combating money laundering
\nand its link to terrorism.<\/p>\n
In his presentation, Curtis A. Ward, Adviser on Technical
\nAssistance of the United Nations Security Council, said the
\nchallenge posed by international terrorism in its new
\nmanifestation had awakened the global community to a clearer
\nunderstanding of the need for new measures to enhance the level
\nof cooperation between states at the bilateral, regional and
\ninternational levels.<\/p>\n
The UN Security Council has thus imposed several resolutions
\nto deal with this contentious issue.
\nbeginning with the establishment of the Counter Terrorism
\nCommittee (CTC).<\/p>\n
In addition, the Security Council has set up the Counter
\nTerrorism Committee (CTC), which is tasked with monitoring the
\ncompliance of states with the requirements of the resolution, and
\nreceiving reports from states on the actions they have taken to
\nimplement the resolutions.<\/p>\n
States are required to demonstrate, concisely and clearly, the
\nlegislative and executive measures they have in place, or have
\ncontemplated, to give effect to the resolution.<\/p>\n
\"The process of capacity building for combating terrorism will
\nbe a long-term commitment for all. There is no quick fix for the
\nproblems, hence long-term support of the donor community is
\nneeded.<\/p>\n
The meeting on Tuesday also revealed Indonesia's experience in
\ndealing with money laundering, as presented by Senior Deputy
\nGovernor of Bank Indonesia Anwar Nasution.<\/p>\n
The outcomes of the conference will be a Co-chairs' Statements
\nand Report, which will summarize the discussions of the
\nconference. The report will be designed to feed into and inform
\nfuture international and regional work on these issues, including
\nthe Pacific Rim Conference in March 2003, as well as other
\nregional forums.<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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