Pakistan’s Blatant Violations of FATF Rules
By
Francesca Marino
25 June
2020
Looks like
COVID-19 has been a blessing (not so much) in disguise for Pakistan. While the
rest of the world was busy dealing with lockdowns and medical news, Islamabad
and its army used this 'suspended' time to ‘clean their house’ and deal with a
couple of hot issues. In their own way, of course.
And the
hottest issue on the table was the 24 June FATF meeting. June has come, and
with June has returned the (by now usual) Damocles' sword hanging over
Pakistan's head: being blacklisted by the FATF. So naturally, Pakistan must
keep its house in order.
Post
US-Taliban Peace Deal, Pakistan Is Finding It ‘Easier’ to Operate in
Afghanistan Through Taliban
Due to the
increasing scrutiny on the activities of the terror groups in Pakistan by the
FATF, the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) has, in the last few months, been
tirelessly working towards shifting the training camps of groups like the
Lashkar-e-Tayyiba and Jaish-e-Muhammad to Afghanistan.
Further,
with Taliban’s influence growing in Afghanistan, especially after the
US-Taliban Peace Agreement, Pakistan has been finding it easier to operate in
the country through the Taliban.
According
to local sources, LeT and JeM have gradually set up operationals based in
Kunar, in Nangarhar and Laghman provinces of Afghanistan. According to the same
sources, both from Pakistani and Afghani sides of the border, in the months of
March and April 2020, nearly 250 LeT &JeM cadres has been moved by the ISI
from Bajaur Agency and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, into Kunar province through the Keka
Pass, after completing their arms training camps in Paktia, in Badakhshan, and
Wazakhwa district in Paktika.
These
cadres support the Taliban in undertaking terror attacks in Afghanistan as well
as against the Afghan National Army. In May, at least 35 cadres of JeM entered
the Nangarhar province through Kurram district. The JeM has at least six
training camps in Nangarhar, and both JeM and LeT are – in some places –
sharing camps with Taliban cadres.
Rumour has
it that even Ibrahim Azhar, one of Masood Azhar's brothers, is in Afghanistan
to look after the 'family business'. A recent report published on 27 May by the
UN Security Council confirms that: “Jaish-i-Mohammed and Lashkar-e-Tayyiba
facilitate the trafficking of terrorist fighters into Afghanistan, who act as
advisers, trainers and specialists in improvised explosive devices. Both groups
are responsible for carrying out targeted assassinations against government
officials and others”. Adding that: “The presence of these groups is centred in
the eastern provinces of Kunar, Nangarhar and Nuristan, where they operate
under the umbrella of the Afghan Taliban”.
And the
activities of terror groups and their ‘charities’ have been going on during all
these months, despite everything, all over Pakistan.
The Jamatud
Dawah (JuD) has been working to create a number of district committees to
contest, under the banner of the Hafiz Saeed-backed Allah-o-Akbar Tehreek, the
elections in Punjab scheduled for April-March.
Pakistan’s
Blatant Violations Of FATF Rules
The elections
have been postponed because of the pandemic, but the terror machinery has not
stopped. Their training and fund collections have intensified, especially the
ones focussed on Kashmir and Afghanistan. And not only this. Despite
proscription, in fact, and despite Islamabad claiming to have stopped its
activities, JeM continued to advertise its training camps and its activities:
through posters in the streets, through advertisements into Urdu newspapers,
and through its various publications including Musalman Bachche, Madina-Madina,
and O My Sister (a book authored by Masood Azhar).
According
to locals, not only are these publications openly available, but some also
prove to be fund-collection tools. For example, the Musalman Bachche has a
monthly subscription of 30 Pakistani rupees and provides an address (Post Box
No 15, GPO Bahwalpur).
This is in
clear violation of FATF regulation, and contradicts Pakistan’s claim that it
has been ‘containing activities’ of the terrorist’s groups.
But the
move, nevertheless, seemed to work.
No Need
for Pakistan To ‘Whitewash’ This Time
The FATF
decided, in fact, once again, to keep Pakistan on their grey list, and there
was no need to take the other usual ‘big steps’ in counter-terrorism. Jailing
for the 100th time an already-jailed Mohammed Hafiz Saeed, for example, which
has now become a national sport like cricket, or parading their 'good'
terrorist Ehasanullah Ehsan, who had ‘escaped’ from an ISI safe house, and is
most likely in Rawalpindi at the moment.
This time,
most probably because of the leverage the country gained with the ‘peace
agreement’ in Afghanistan, there was not even the need for the usual
‘whitewashing’ in the wake of the FATF meeting, to show more ‘proofs’ of
Pakistan’s goodwill and their efforts to fight terror groups.
But the
truth is of course another story.
The UN
knows, the US knows, the rest of the world knows. And despite this, the farce
goes on, each time with the same script, and with the FATF pretending to
believe in it. Despite the independent reports they get, despite evidences and
the reality. In ancient Rome, Cicero would have asked: “Quo usque tandem
abuterepatientia nostra?” (For how long will you abuse our patience?)
Francesca
Marino is a journalist and a South Asia expert who has written ‘Apocalypse
Pakistan’ with B Natale. She tweets at @francescam63. This is an opinion piece,
and the views expressed above are the author’s own. The Quint neither endorses
nor is responsible for them.
Original
Headline: Pakistan Still On FATF Grey List: When Will This ‘Farce’ End?
Source: The Quint
URL: https://newageislam.com/current-affairs/pakistan’s-blatant-violations-fatf-rules/d/122225
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