Anti money-laundering committee established

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The government has set up a national committee to coordinate strategy in combating money laundering following the passage of the new Money Laundering Law last year.

Under Presidential Decree No. 1/2004, a copy of which has been obtained by The Jakarta Post, the committee will coordinate the efforts of various state agencies in preventing and combating money laundering.

The committee, chaired by the coordinating minister for political and security affairs, with the coordinating minister for the economy serving as deputy chairman, will make recommendations to the president on policies designed to prevent money laundering.

In performing its duties, the committee will be assisted by a working group led by the head of the government-backed Financial Transaction and Report Analysis Center (PPATK).

The PPATK is tasked with investigating reports of suspicious transactions from the central bank and other financial institutions.

The members of the committee are the minister of foreign affairs, minister of law and human rights, director general of customs and excise, director general of taxation, director general of financial institutions at the Ministry of Finance, the governor of Bank Indonesia, the attorney general, and the heads of the Capital Market Supervisory Board (Bapepam), State Intelligence Agency (BIN), and the National Police.

The committee can invite representatives of financial institutions, experts and other external parties to attend its meetings.

Indonesia has been on the list of uncooperative countries and territories (NCCTs) drawn up by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) since June 2001.

The FATF is a global money-laundering watchdog set up by developed nations of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

Although Indonesia has passed an amended money laundering law (Law No. 15/2002), and established the Financial Transaction and Report Analysis Center (PPATK), the country remains on the list of non-cooperative countries.

The sanctions that may be imposed on NCCTs include the imposition of premium charges on transactions with foreign companies, halting correspondence between Indonesian banks and their counterparts in FATF countries and rejecting Indonesian letters of credit.

Analysts said that rampant corruption and weak law enforcement has turned the country into a safe haven for money launderers and criminals in general.