Kenya's Parliament finally passed the Proceeds of Crime and Anti-Money Laundering Bill in December. But while the passing of the bill is viewed as a highlight of the Tenth Parliament, many fear it may just be a gimmick by the government to appease international partners.
George Kegoro, the executive director of International Commission of Jurists - Kenya Chapter, says while the legislation is good, he doubts there is political will to completely stamp out money laundering in Kenya.
"The existence of the legislation is not sufficient to deter the vice neither are the stiff penalties that are recommended in the bill," he says. "There is need for genuine support from the government to enact this law. We need a good set of people to be put in place to interpret the legislation."
Kegoro, whose organisation undertakes advocacy and policy work aimed at strengthening the role of lawyers and judges in protecting human rights and the rule of law, argues that while the bill was government-sponsored, Kenya’s track-record on corruption is poor and he doubts the genuineness of the political class.
It is the fourth attempt since 2004 to pass a bill to prevent the concealment of large profits from drug trafficking and other organised crime, and even this time around it faced resistance from members of parliament who believed the bill was a sly back-door re-introduction of an Anti-Terrorism Bill which had been quashed.
When the bill was tabled in November, an assistant minister in defiance of his own government, strongly opposed the tenets of the Bill. The assistant minister for public service, Aden Sugow, opposed the Bill saying it was an attack on the Muslim community. He argued implementing the Bill would be bowing to the interests of external interests and said that Kenya currently has adequate laws in place to deter money laundering.
While supporting the bill, defence minister Yusuf Hajji warned of a general feeling among the Muslim community that the legislation was targeting them. The Bill went forward after assurances from Prime Minister Raila Odinga that the government had no such intentions.
Once signed by the president, the law will establish a Financial Reporting Centre to assist in the identification of the proceeds of crime. An Asset Recovery Agency will be charged with tracing and recovering ill-gotten assets.
According to Job Ogonda executive director of international corruption watchdogs Transparency International, this would mean millions of dollars stashed in off-shore accounts swindled from Kenya could be recovered.
But Ogonda doubts the passage of new legislation will improve Kenya’s standing as a corrupt state internationally.
"At the moment it is embarrassing to be a Kenyan. Nigeria is improving with regards to corruption because they have shown tangible commitment of doing something about graft. However, the same cannot be said for Kenya," he says.
"We have previously had good pieces of legislation which would have helped fight graft, however, nothing has been done. How many ministers or former ministers have ever gone to prison because of corruption?" Ogonda wonders.
Ogonda is referring to anti-corruption legislation such as the Public Procurement and the Public Officers Ethics Act which require all public office holders to declare their wealth and origin of the same: this older legislation has had no noticeable effect.
Kenya’s record internationally as a corrupt state has for many years been bad and in the bribery and corruption index released by Transparency International, the country has kept the company of states such as Nigeria, Russia and Zimbabwe. Currently, Kenya is position 147 out of 180 on the global index of corruption.
Indeed the passing of the anti-money laundering bill comes in the wake of the release of a U.S. State Department report saying 93 million dollars of earnings from drug trafficking are laundered in the country’s financial system annually.
Another equally damning report by a UK firm, Kroll Associates, hired by the Kenyan government to track wealth acquired corruptly, revealed an estimated $1.7 billion is currently stashed in off-shore accounts. While the results of this 2004 report have remained confidential, the document was leaked: no action has been taken against any of the prominent figures named in its 110 pages.
But all the right noises were made when the bill was moved in Parliament by deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta, who said that in view of the magnitude of the problem to the economy, the debate should focus on the quality of the legislation to ensure it was stringent enough.
Seconding the bill, Raila said, "The country risks becoming a pariah state unless the legislation is passed. We have suffered from the effects of money laundering especially in the property sector whose value has been skyrocketing due to the money being brought from the acts of piracy off the coast of Somalia".
A boom in property prices in Nairobi is preventing a majority of Kenyans from buying real estate, and in some cases even pricing locals out of the rental market. Media reports are linking the boom with profits from Somali pirates who seized numerous vessels during 2009, extracting handsome fees from their owners before releasing ships and crew members. In certain Nairobi neighbourhoods, Somalis are willing and able to pay rent up front for periods of even up to two years.
Ogonda states that for many years, Kenya has been a hub of money laundering with illegally acquired cash from Europe, South Africa, South America, Democratic Republic of Congo, Sudan, Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda and Tanzania finding its way into local financial markets.
"Due to our porous borders and poor implementation of legislation, people have simply walked in with huge amounts of cash, hired a lawyer to front for them who in turn invest the cash, especially in property," Ogonda says.
He says despite moves to assure the independence of the new watchdog agencies' leadership, and fresh monitoring requirements for the banking system, the version of the bill which is now awaiting presidential assent does not demand greater accountability from lawyers whose lawyer-client privileges remain intact.
Kegoro notes that the prescribed penalties are fairly high - jail terms of two to five years, with fines of up to $65,000 for individuals, and corporate penalties set as high as $330,000 or the value of the property. But, he argues, it is not the severity of the penalty that will make people fear it. It is the certainty of being caught, hence the need for genuine political will to implement the law.
Ogonda is in agreement. "Application of the bill is what will be the determining factor. The structure of governance has to support the law and if it remains the same the legislation can exist and nothing will change."
By Susan Anyangu-Amu
Source: IPS
Tampilkan postingan dengan label South Africa. Tampilkan semua postingan
Tampilkan postingan dengan label South Africa. Tampilkan semua postingan
Rabu, 06 Juni 2012
Selasa, 29 Mei 2012
Sth Africa's Zuma charged with corruption
New leader of the governing ANC party in South Africa, Jacob Zuma, has been charged with corruption.
Prosecutors have served papers ordering him to stand trial on counts of corruption, fraud, money laundering and racketeering.
Mr Zuma stands accused of taking a bribe from a French arms company during his time as vice president.
The documents from the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) were not unexpected.
The NPA's specialist anti-corruption unit, known as the Scorpions, has been investigating allegations of corruption for years, and last month they won an appeal court battle to get access to critical documents for their inquiries.
Mr Zuma and his supporters have always denied any wrongdoing, and they have insisted the allegations of corruption are all part of a grand conspiracy to destroy his political career.
Mr Zuma's lawyer Michael Hulley says the trial is expected to start in August next year and that some of the allegations are old.
"Some of the actual charges which have been signed in a previous indictment have been repeated, and others have been added," he said.
"Broadly speaking, they currently range from racketeering, to money laundering, to corruption, as well as fraud."
-BBC/ABC
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/12/29/2128629.htm?section=world
Prosecutors have served papers ordering him to stand trial on counts of corruption, fraud, money laundering and racketeering.
Mr Zuma stands accused of taking a bribe from a French arms company during his time as vice president.
The documents from the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) were not unexpected.
The NPA's specialist anti-corruption unit, known as the Scorpions, has been investigating allegations of corruption for years, and last month they won an appeal court battle to get access to critical documents for their inquiries.
Mr Zuma and his supporters have always denied any wrongdoing, and they have insisted the allegations of corruption are all part of a grand conspiracy to destroy his political career.
Mr Zuma's lawyer Michael Hulley says the trial is expected to start in August next year and that some of the allegations are old.
"Some of the actual charges which have been signed in a previous indictment have been repeated, and others have been added," he said.
"Broadly speaking, they currently range from racketeering, to money laundering, to corruption, as well as fraud."
-BBC/ABC
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/12/29/2128629.htm?section=world
Senin, 21 Mei 2012
Sri Lanka: International Conference on Countering Terrorism
Sri Lanka: International Conference on Countering Terrorism draws international terrorism experts to Colombo
20th October 2007
The three-day International Conference on Countering Terrorism is now on in Colombo on the theme 'Terrorism: A Challenge to Democratically Elected Governments.' The Conference, brought together renowned terrorism experts, including from the academia and the media, from 23 countries including Australia, China, Czech Republic, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Russia, Singapore, South Africa, the United States and Vietnam. It was also widely attended by the Diplomatic Community .
Delivering the Inaugural Address, Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama, highlighted that "Sri Lanka had been a foot soldier in the battle against terrorism over a long period of time and notwithstanding some impediments and setbacks, can in several aspects count itself as having been a success story in the battle against terrorism." Sri Lanka's refusal to compromise or condone terrorism while constantly seeking to resolve the conflict through political means, to persuade other states to proscribe the LTTE, prevent money flows and apprehend those conniving with terrorists, has been significant. Successive governments and the people of Sri Lanka have also shown considerable resilience in the face of terror, whilst also ensuring that economic growth was not compromised. The Minister hoped that the deliberations of this Conference would, among other matters focus on the need for states to go beyond merely adopting conventions, to convert these into tangible action by developing enabling legislation and taking concrete action against those including terrorist front organizations operating from their soil. Noting that a bulk of maritime traffic passes through the Indian Ocean region and that in recent times many acts of terrorism had taken place in these waters, the Minister emphasized the urgent necessity to develop robust modalities to arrest the growing threat that faces Indian Ocean states from terrorists.
The former Director of the European Center for the Study of Conflicts in France, and one of the earliest writers in the field of terrorism, Dr. Gerard Chaliand traced the evolution of terrorism over the years. Referring to the LTTE, he said "the independence they ask cannot be granted and should not be granted, not only because no State is willing to accept such a blow to its sovereignity but also because, like the Shining Path or the Khmer Rouges, the LTTE under the leadership of V. Prabhakaran is a totalitarian movement, which has transformed its groups into a killing machine." He said "the most important thing about the LTTE is that it is a totalitarian movement fighting in a country which is democratic." He said the "LTTE has brutally eliminated all other parties or groups willing to represent the Tamils". "An absolutely intolerant sect, no peace seems possible with V. Prabhakaran as we have seen from the peace process of 2002-2005, which was but a tactical truce", Dr. Chaliand added.
Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Palitha Kohona delivering the vote-of-thanks repeated the unprecedented challenge Sri Lanka faces in combating terrorism and Sri Lanka. He said the world had focused on international terrorism only after 9/11 but terrorism had affected countries long before then. He emphasized that "the international rule of law against terrorism is being strong themed each year," adding that "there are 13 UN Conventions addressing different dimensions of the global terrorist threat and a comprehensive convention is being negotiated." The Foreign Secretary pointed out that "terrorism will never be eradicated solely by cooperation among law enforcement officials. It requires a concerted political effort and policy coordination among countries. Further it also requires an ability to understand and minimize the motivation and impetus that inspire terrorist acts."
Renowned Chairman of the French Anti-Terrorist Judges, Judge Jean Louis Bruguiere, who was the Guest of Honour of the Conference, and addressing the first panel of the day focused on the international responses to terrorism, traced the manner in which international efforts at responding to terrorism have evolved over the years, stating that if the fight against terrorism is an inescapable requirement, "we owe it to ourselves to reinforce our international cooperation at every level, notably by adopting multilateral or bilateral conventions in the field of judicial cooperation as well as extradition." He said the French Government considers "that an organization like the LTTE is a terrorist organization like any other and that its activities even in the area of logistics, have to be repressed with the same vigour as for terrorist networks operating on our [French] soil and threatening us directly" and that on this basis "that in April this year the French Government had dismantled a vast network of Tamil militants who actively supported the LTTE, notably at the financial level."
This session, which was chaired by the Dean of the Faculty of Arts of the University of Colombo, Prof. Amal Jayawardena,while the discussants were the Executive Director of the Regional Centre for Strategic Studies, Dr. Rifaat Hussain and the Senior Terrorism Prevention Officer of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Vienna, Dr. Ms. Irka Kuleshnyk.
Addressing the panel on regional responses to terrorism, former Commander of the Indian Army, Gen. V. P. Malik emphasized the need to combat and defeat terrorism in all its manifestations. He said "terrorist activities anywhere will stop only when their fuel runs out." Gen. Malik who traced the important steps taken to counter terrorism in South Asia, emphasized the need for a regional strategy and cooperation, but essentially local operatives and doctrines.
Former Secretary General of SAARC, Ambassador Nihal Rodrigo, chaired this session, while the discussants comprised the Associate Research Fellow of the China Institute of International Studies, Prof. Zhang Lijun, the Deputy Director of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Mr. Vladimir Titokerni as well as the Pro-Chancellor and Director of the School of Science and Forensic Science, National Law University Rajastan, India, Prof. P. Chandra Sekharan.
The third thematic session focused on the domestic dimensions of terrorism where the head of the International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research in Singapore, Dr. Rohan Gunaratna, who was the principal speaker, who joining the deliberations on a video link, highlighted the recent successes of the security forces in combating LTTE terrorism. He noted that within the year the Sri Lanka Navy destroyed eight merchant vessels. In order to defeat the LTTE, Dr. Gunaratna articulated the need for strengthening and building capacity in the intelligence field, with a high degree of professionalism, and also stressed the necessity for special forces and elite units that could target the leadership of the LTTE.
Former Inspector General of Police, Mr. Chandra Fernando chaired the discussion at which intervention were made by Deputy Solicitor General, Mr. Dappula de Livera and Prof. Karunaratne Hangawatte of the University of Nevada.
The final panel discussion of the day focused of the critical area of combating terrorist financing, where the Founder and CEO of World-Check, Mr. David Leppan spoke extensively on the manner in which terror groups collect funds and their illegal activities.
Researcher of the Centre for Policing, Intelligence and Counter Terrorism of the Macquarie University of Australia, Mr. Shanaka Jayasekera the co-speaker at this session noted that the LTTE's supply chain capability has been significantly disrupted, estimated at between 65% to 70%. This would result in the need for the LTTE to aggressively campaign for fund raising activities in the 12 top level resource mobilization countries. In order to maintain the advantage the Government has achieved, it is imperative that the fund-raising be curbed with international cooperation in the next few months. Therefore it is suggested that a contact group be established as a prelude to the commencement of a political process."
The Deputy Governor of the Central Bank, Dr. Ms. Ranee Jayamaha chaired the sessions, at which the discussants were Mrs. Joan De Zilva Moonesinghe formerly of the Financial Investigation Unit and the Advisor of the Financial Investigation Unit of the Central Bank, Mr. Eric Stonecipher.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Colombo
20 October 2007
20th October 2007
The three-day International Conference on Countering Terrorism is now on in Colombo on the theme 'Terrorism: A Challenge to Democratically Elected Governments.' The Conference, brought together renowned terrorism experts, including from the academia and the media, from 23 countries including Australia, China, Czech Republic, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Russia, Singapore, South Africa, the United States and Vietnam. It was also widely attended by the Diplomatic Community .
Delivering the Inaugural Address, Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama, highlighted that "Sri Lanka had been a foot soldier in the battle against terrorism over a long period of time and notwithstanding some impediments and setbacks, can in several aspects count itself as having been a success story in the battle against terrorism." Sri Lanka's refusal to compromise or condone terrorism while constantly seeking to resolve the conflict through political means, to persuade other states to proscribe the LTTE, prevent money flows and apprehend those conniving with terrorists, has been significant. Successive governments and the people of Sri Lanka have also shown considerable resilience in the face of terror, whilst also ensuring that economic growth was not compromised. The Minister hoped that the deliberations of this Conference would, among other matters focus on the need for states to go beyond merely adopting conventions, to convert these into tangible action by developing enabling legislation and taking concrete action against those including terrorist front organizations operating from their soil. Noting that a bulk of maritime traffic passes through the Indian Ocean region and that in recent times many acts of terrorism had taken place in these waters, the Minister emphasized the urgent necessity to develop robust modalities to arrest the growing threat that faces Indian Ocean states from terrorists.
The former Director of the European Center for the Study of Conflicts in France, and one of the earliest writers in the field of terrorism, Dr. Gerard Chaliand traced the evolution of terrorism over the years. Referring to the LTTE, he said "the independence they ask cannot be granted and should not be granted, not only because no State is willing to accept such a blow to its sovereignity but also because, like the Shining Path or the Khmer Rouges, the LTTE under the leadership of V. Prabhakaran is a totalitarian movement, which has transformed its groups into a killing machine." He said "the most important thing about the LTTE is that it is a totalitarian movement fighting in a country which is democratic." He said the "LTTE has brutally eliminated all other parties or groups willing to represent the Tamils". "An absolutely intolerant sect, no peace seems possible with V. Prabhakaran as we have seen from the peace process of 2002-2005, which was but a tactical truce", Dr. Chaliand added.
Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Palitha Kohona delivering the vote-of-thanks repeated the unprecedented challenge Sri Lanka faces in combating terrorism and Sri Lanka. He said the world had focused on international terrorism only after 9/11 but terrorism had affected countries long before then. He emphasized that "the international rule of law against terrorism is being strong themed each year," adding that "there are 13 UN Conventions addressing different dimensions of the global terrorist threat and a comprehensive convention is being negotiated." The Foreign Secretary pointed out that "terrorism will never be eradicated solely by cooperation among law enforcement officials. It requires a concerted political effort and policy coordination among countries. Further it also requires an ability to understand and minimize the motivation and impetus that inspire terrorist acts."
Renowned Chairman of the French Anti-Terrorist Judges, Judge Jean Louis Bruguiere, who was the Guest of Honour of the Conference, and addressing the first panel of the day focused on the international responses to terrorism, traced the manner in which international efforts at responding to terrorism have evolved over the years, stating that if the fight against terrorism is an inescapable requirement, "we owe it to ourselves to reinforce our international cooperation at every level, notably by adopting multilateral or bilateral conventions in the field of judicial cooperation as well as extradition." He said the French Government considers "that an organization like the LTTE is a terrorist organization like any other and that its activities even in the area of logistics, have to be repressed with the same vigour as for terrorist networks operating on our [French] soil and threatening us directly" and that on this basis "that in April this year the French Government had dismantled a vast network of Tamil militants who actively supported the LTTE, notably at the financial level."
This session, which was chaired by the Dean of the Faculty of Arts of the University of Colombo, Prof. Amal Jayawardena,while the discussants were the Executive Director of the Regional Centre for Strategic Studies, Dr. Rifaat Hussain and the Senior Terrorism Prevention Officer of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Vienna, Dr. Ms. Irka Kuleshnyk.
Addressing the panel on regional responses to terrorism, former Commander of the Indian Army, Gen. V. P. Malik emphasized the need to combat and defeat terrorism in all its manifestations. He said "terrorist activities anywhere will stop only when their fuel runs out." Gen. Malik who traced the important steps taken to counter terrorism in South Asia, emphasized the need for a regional strategy and cooperation, but essentially local operatives and doctrines.
Former Secretary General of SAARC, Ambassador Nihal Rodrigo, chaired this session, while the discussants comprised the Associate Research Fellow of the China Institute of International Studies, Prof. Zhang Lijun, the Deputy Director of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Mr. Vladimir Titokerni as well as the Pro-Chancellor and Director of the School of Science and Forensic Science, National Law University Rajastan, India, Prof. P. Chandra Sekharan.
The third thematic session focused on the domestic dimensions of terrorism where the head of the International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research in Singapore, Dr. Rohan Gunaratna, who was the principal speaker, who joining the deliberations on a video link, highlighted the recent successes of the security forces in combating LTTE terrorism. He noted that within the year the Sri Lanka Navy destroyed eight merchant vessels. In order to defeat the LTTE, Dr. Gunaratna articulated the need for strengthening and building capacity in the intelligence field, with a high degree of professionalism, and also stressed the necessity for special forces and elite units that could target the leadership of the LTTE.
Former Inspector General of Police, Mr. Chandra Fernando chaired the discussion at which intervention were made by Deputy Solicitor General, Mr. Dappula de Livera and Prof. Karunaratne Hangawatte of the University of Nevada.
The final panel discussion of the day focused of the critical area of combating terrorist financing, where the Founder and CEO of World-Check, Mr. David Leppan spoke extensively on the manner in which terror groups collect funds and their illegal activities.
Researcher of the Centre for Policing, Intelligence and Counter Terrorism of the Macquarie University of Australia, Mr. Shanaka Jayasekera the co-speaker at this session noted that the LTTE's supply chain capability has been significantly disrupted, estimated at between 65% to 70%. This would result in the need for the LTTE to aggressively campaign for fund raising activities in the 12 top level resource mobilization countries. In order to maintain the advantage the Government has achieved, it is imperative that the fund-raising be curbed with international cooperation in the next few months. Therefore it is suggested that a contact group be established as a prelude to the commencement of a political process."
The Deputy Governor of the Central Bank, Dr. Ms. Ranee Jayamaha chaired the sessions, at which the discussants were Mrs. Joan De Zilva Moonesinghe formerly of the Financial Investigation Unit and the Advisor of the Financial Investigation Unit of the Central Bank, Mr. Eric Stonecipher.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Colombo
20 October 2007
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