Pakistan announces crackdown on UN terror list groups

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Monday announced the freezing of accounts and seizure of assets linked to organisations banned by the UN Security Council (UNSC).

The Foreign Office said in a statement that the government had issued the "United Nations Security Council (Freezing and Seizure) Order, 2019 in accordance with the provisions of Pakistan's UN Security Council (UNSC) Act, 1948 (Act No.XIV of 1948)."

"The objective of the UNSC (Freezing and Seizure) Order 2019 is to streamline the procedure for implementation of Security Council Sanctions against designated individuals and entities," the statement read. 

"It may be recalled that the Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter authorises the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), acting under Article 41, to decide measures, not involving the use of armed force, to give effect to its decisions for the maintenance of international peace and security. In Pakistan, such decisions of the Security Council are implemented through the United Nations Security Council Act (UNSC), 1948 (Act No. XIV of 1948).

"Over the years the sanctions regime of the United Nations Security Council have evolved. A key measure of these sanctions regimes is "assets freeze" under which States are required to freeze/seize the assets of designated entities and individuals as soon as they are designated by the relevant UNSC Sanctions Committee."

This UNSC Order 2019 has been made keeping in view UNSC and Financial Action Task Force standards.

In February, the FATF had directed Pakistan to do more to curb money laundering, according to a statement on the FATF website. "Since June 2018, when Pakistan made a high-level political commitment to work with the FATF and APG (Asia Pacific Group) to strengthen its AML/CFT regime and to address its strategic counter-terrorist financing-related deficiencies, Pakistan has taken steps towards improving its AML/CFT regime, including by operationalising the integrated database for its currency declaration regime," read the FATF statement.

The Ministry of Finance said in a statement that FATF would review Pakistan's performance in June 2019.

FATF, a global body that combats terror financing and money laundering, had taken the decision to place Pakistan on its 'grey list' during a plenary meeting in February 2018.