Transcript Link to presentation - OAS :: Department of Conferences and

Proposal for addressing TOC in the
framework of the CSH 2015–2016
Regional Overview of Money Laundering
and CICAD Initiatives
Nelson Mena, Section Chief
Ana Álvarez, Legal Specialist
Organization of American States
Secretariat for Multidimensional Security
Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission
Washington, D.C.
December 2015
I. CURRENT STATUS
OF THE ISSUE
Organization of American States
Secretariat for Multidimensional Security
Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission
I. Current status of the issue
•
“In today's globalized context domestic systems have to react to dysfunctional phenomena
according to likewise global criteria” (Fabián Caparros, Combating Money Laundering from the
Judicial System, CICAD publication).
•
This has led countries to become aware of the need to adapt to the standards that currently
govern the international financial sector and impact multiple facets of countries' development.
As a result, they have submitted to the 40 Recommendations of the Financial Action Task
Force (FATF), which introduced international standards on prevention and suppression of
money laundering and financing of terrorism.
•
In February 2012, those recommendations (which date from 2003) were amended to reflect the
fact that the entire AML/CFT system should be based on "risk assessment and the application
of a risk-based approach.” This means that countries must identify, assess, and understand
their ML/FT risks, take steps, and deploy resources to ensure that those risks are effectively
mitigated (FATF, Rec. 1).
Organization of American States
Secretariat for Multidimensional Security
Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission
• Other important aspects are asset forfeiture, proactive asset investigation
in parallel with predicate offenses, and management systems for assets
seized from criminals.
• FATF Rec. 2 provides that countries should adopt measures, including
legislative ones, to allow their competent authorities to freeze, seize and
confiscate the object, proceeds, and instrumentalities used in or intended
for use in the commission of ML/FT offenses and their predicate offenses
• FATF Rec. 38 provides that countries should have an authority to take
expeditious action in response to requests by foreign countries to identify,
freeze, seize and confiscate ML/FT-related assets, as well as have in place
effective mechanisms to manage those assets and establish arrangements
for coordinating seizure and confiscation proceedings, which may include
the sharing of confiscated assets.
Organization of American States
Secretariat for Multidimensional Security
Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission
II. FATF MUTUAL
EVALUATIONS
Organization of American States
Secretariat for Multidimensional Security
Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission
II. FATF Mutual Evaluations
•
With the aim of reviewing those standards, countries worldwide now face a new round of
mutual evaluations and with them new challenges in which the main focus will be on the
effectiveness of their implementation.
•
The mutual evaluations of specialized agencies like the FATF (CFATF, GAFILAT) have had an
impact in terms of making ML/FT prevention and suppression systems fairly well developed
and of harmonizing domestic laws at the international level, notwithstanding certain
modifications that countries need to make to adapt their legal systems to the new
standards.
•
As a result of the mutual evaluations, current statistics suggest that in this regard –
effectiveness– there are a number of obstacles and shortcomings to overcome, such as: the
low number of convictions in ML/FT cases; operational weaknesses in the area of
international cooperation for the recovery of assets and their respective forfeiture; and the
absence in some countries of effective systems or mechanisms for managing seized and
confiscated assets.
Organization of American States
Secretariat for Multidimensional Security
Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission
II. FATF Mutual Evaluations
Consequently, the CICAD Group of Experts to Control Money Laundering,
based on its work done at its XXXVII Plenary Meeting in Brasilia in September
2013, and on other recommendations made by the Group in previous years,
recommended a number of lines of action to CICAD in areas that, based on
the findings of the evaluations and the review of the FATF recommendations,
urgently need to be addressed as effective measures that member states
might implement to improve their AML/CFT systems.
Organization of American States
Secretariat for Multidimensional Security
Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission
III. RECOMMENDATIONS OF
GELAVEX/CICAD FOR IMPROVING
ANTI-MONEY-LAUNDERING SYSTEMS
IN THE AMERICAS AND THE
CARIBBEAN
Organization of American States
Secretariat for Multidimensional Security
Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission
Recommendations:
• 1. Strengthen the capacities of the authorities in charge of combating
money laundering and related crimes;
• 2. Improve the effectiveness of international cooperation in the area of
asset recovery;
• 3. Develop and/or strengthen forfeiture systems, including asset
investigation, administration of assets derived from crime, and
specialized units to address the issue;
• 4. Advance the study of methodological instruments to allow each
country to develop its analysis of risk factors, in cooperation with
specialized international organizations.
Included in resolution AG/RES. 2866 (XLIV-O/14)
"Reflections and Guidelines to Formulate and Follow up on
Comprehensive Policies to Address the World Drug Problem in the
Americas"
Organization of American States
Secretariat for Multidimensional Security
Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission
IV. INITIATIVES OF THE CICAD
EXECUTIVE SECRETARIAT:
TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND
TRAINING PROGRAMS
Organization of American States
Secretariat for Multidimensional Security
Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission
Technical assistance and training
Organization of American States
Secretariat for Multidimensional Security
Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission
Group of Experts to Control Money
Laundering – Work Plan 2015–2016
Sub-Working Group on International Cooperation and
Forfeiture:
a) Administration of complex assets
b) Promotion of the development of effective forfeiture laws and
their effective implementation in member states.
Sub-Working Group on FIUs and Criminal Investigation
Agencies:
a) Study on special investigative techniques
b) Asset investigation guidelines
Organization of American States
Secretariat for Multidimensional Security
Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission
Training Program for Financial Intelligence
Units
Objective:
Strengthen the operational capacity and analytics of FIUs, providing them
with the legal, administrative, and technological tools and human resources
necessary for the collection, storage, analysis, and dissemination of
information on financial intelligence.
Components:
Workshops on analysis, linkages and relationships, specialized courses on
forensic accounting and analysis of financial intelligence information;
workshops on facilitating dialogue between the public and private sectors on
AML/CFT; and workshops on strategic analysis.
Organization of American States
Secretariat for Multidimensional Security
Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission
Training on Money Laundering for
Law Enforcement Agencies
Objective:
Provide training on the application of special investigative
techniques as well as strategies for asset investigation that facilitate
the seizure and forfeiture of assets and other evidence connected
to these criminal activities.
Components:
Mock investigations
Organization of American States
Secretariat for Multidimensional Security
Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission
International cooperation
on asset recovery
Objective:
Offer tools in order to carry out the identification, location and
recovery of assets in an effective manner and conforming with
international standards on money laundering and related offenses.
Components:
• Technical assistance to the GAFILAT (RRAG) Asset Recovery
Network
• Support for the establishment of an asset recovery network for
the Caribbean
• Program for International Cooperation
in Asset Recovery (REACT)
Organization of American States
Secretariat for Multidimensional Security
Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission
Money Laundering Training Program
for the Judiciary
Objective:
Train judges and prosecutors in order to increase the number of
urged prosecutions and convictions on the subject of money
laundering.
Components:
Mock trials; workshops on special investigative techniques;
methodological program to strengthen the management of the
chain of custody; and workshops for judges and prosecutors
Organization of American States
Secretariat for Multidimensional Security
Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission
Strengthening national systems for the administration and
disposal of seized and forfeited assets
Objective:
Strengthen the technical capacity of the member states in asset
investigation, identification, location, seizure, forfeiture, administration
and disposition of assets from money laundering and related crimes.
Component:
The Latin America Seized and Forfeited Asset Management Project (BIDAL)
identifies the weaknesses and strengths, as well as legal gaps and practical
difficulties, that exist in Member States’ forfeiture processes and proposes
recommendations to achieve efficiency and transparency in all phases.
Organization of American States
Secretariat for Multidimensional Security
Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission
Thank you very much.
[email protected]
[email protected]
Organization of American States
Secretariat for Multidimensional Security
Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission