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Boost in OFW remittances eyed |
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TODAY, 15 February 2005
More than seven million overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who are now assured of a smooth international remittance system are the prime beneficiaries of the delisting of the Philippines from the list of money-laundering havens—a development that Senate President Franklin Drilon sees to augur well for the economy. The Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF) against money laundering had taken out the country from its watchlist of “uncooperative” states last week, citing the effective implementation of antimoney laundering measures. In a statement, Drilon said the FATF action was good news not only for the country’s financial sector but also to the estimated 7.5 million OFWs. “Our efforts to get the Philippines out of this FATF watchlist were primarily anchored on our desire to protect the interests of our millions of OFWs who would have been adversely affected if sanctions were imposed on us by the international banking community,” said Drilon. Financial analysts had earlier warned that FATF sanctions against the Philippines could result in delayed remittances and exorbitant charges in international banks. Last year OFWs remitted a total of P7 billion to the Philippines, Drilon noted. With the delisting, the inflow of foreign direct investments and overseas dollar remittances from OFWs is expected to increase since the transaction procedures would ease up. However, Senate finance committee chairman Manuel Villar warned, “We must remain vigilant against financial terrorism and avoid being complacent. We must continue our fight against money laundering and actively support antimoney-laundering campaign or programs. We in the Senate would continue to monitor enforcement of antimoney laundering laws.” Villar congratulated the Philippine agencies that worked relentlessly to enforce tough antimoney laundering measures. Besides the Department of Finance (DoF) and the Bangko Sentral, Villar lauded the Anti-Money Laundering Council, the Department of Justice and the National Bureau of Investigation. The establishment of special courts, for instance, was one of the major factors that convinced the FATF to take out the Philippines from its list. Drilon also cited the serious and comprehensive steps to curb money laundering, consistent with international standards. The Senate President played a major role in leading efforts to amend the Philippine Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2001 during the 12th Congress to make it conform to international banking standards. “We have done our share in ensuring that our laws are on a par with the standards of the international banking community when we enacted landmark legislation during the 12th Congress. We are confident that our antimoney-laundering laws are able to prevent criminals and terrorists from using our banks to launder dirty money,” Drilon said. On Friday the FATF said it had removed the Philippines, Indonesia and the Cook Islands from its list of “noncooperative” countries and territories. FATF is an organization formed by member-countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, which includes the powerful Group of Seven developed nations. Money laundering is a crime whereby the proceeds of an unlawful activity are transacted, thereby making them appear to have sprung from legitimate sources. The FATF was created in 1990 to enforce measures to prevent criminals or terrorists from using the financial systems and markets. The task force released its NCCT (noncooperative countries and territories) list, where the Philippines has been included since 2000. Those on the list are considered as having “critical deficiencies in their anti-money laundering systems or a demonstrated unwillingness to cooperate in anti-money laundering efforts”.Last year, only six countries remained from the original 15 NACCT. These are Indonesia, Cook Islands, Myanmar, Nauru, Nigeria and the Philippines. In January this year, FATF officials visited the Philippines to again examine its systems |
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