Ecuador Is No Money Launderer

By Guillermo Lara

In view of reports in the international press announcing that Ecuador had been included by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) in a list of countries that pose a high risk for the international financial system, Diego Garc?a Carri?n, attorney general of the state and president of the National Council on Money Laundering of Ecuador, asked the citizens and the media to refer only to the official information of FATF, published in its official Web site www.fatf-gafi.org

Attorney General Garc?a clarified that, according to the official version of FATF, Ecuador has been included in a list of countries having partial strategic deficiencies in anti-money laundering and combating terrorist financing, and that it has failed to undertake to develop a plan of action jointly with FATF and GAFISUD to overcome these deficiencies.

Regarding this issue, the attorney general noted that the deficiencies pointed out by FATF are based on an evaluation of Ecuador made in 2007. Currently, Ecuador presents significant advances that have not been taken into account.

Likewise, the attorney general rejected any misinterpretation of the implications of the decision of FATF that may damage the image of Ecuador as a country that is part of the international community, which has made huge efforts in the fight against transnational crimes, including money laundering or terrorist financing, as this constitutes an unacceptable blow to the efforts carried out by our country.

In this sense, the attorney general reported that in a letter addressed to the president of FATF on Tuesday Feb. 16, 2010, he highlighted the significant efforts Ecuador has been carrying out to achieve compliance with the 40 + 9 Recommendations of FATF. To this end, both the members of the National Council on Money Laundering of Ecuador and of the Financial Intelligence Unit have been working together with the respective Group of Evaluation of Ecuador to demonstrate the advances made concerning regulation and supervision through the various mutual evaluation reports submitted by Ecuador.

In his letter, the attorney general, in his capacity as president of the National Council on Money Laundering, and on behalf of the State of Ecuador, ratified the intention of the country to continue in its efforts and actions to achieve compliance of the 40 + 9 Recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) in the shortest time possible, so that Ecuador may be able to submit its advances during the upcoming assembly of GAFISUD, which will take place in June of this year.

He also highlighted the work being executed by the National Council on Money Laundering in order to make the required reforms to the Law to suppress Money Laundering currently in force, including the specific criminalization of the crime of terrorist financing in the bill of law being discussed, a crime that at present has already been included in the law in a generic way.

The attorney general told FATF that the National Council on Money Laundering expects to finish the drafting of this bill of law and submit it to the consideration of the National Assembly and the Government of Ecuador, for its analysis and debate, within the first quarter of this year.

Likewise, the attorney general reported that a letter jointly signed with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ecuador, Ec. Ricardo Pati?o Aroca was sent to the president of FATF on Feb. 11, 2010, to inform him of the significant advances contained in Ecuador's Law to suppress Money Laundering, compared to similar laws of other nations in the region, because the Ecuadorian legislation considers money laundering as an autonomous crime, whereby it is not necessary to prove the existence of crimes precedent to money laundering. Such is the case of terrorist financing, considered as an illicit activity, as terrorism is criminalized in the Criminal Code of Ecuador.

In this letter, while explaining the process of constitutional and legal reforms underway in the country since 2007, the attorney general and the foreign minister stressed that the stipulations of the Ecuadorian legislation currently allow to effectively fight the crime of terrorist financing, just as the financing of any other illicit activity, without it being absolutely necessary or possible for the time being, given the process of changes in the legislation that is still underway in Ecuador, to immediately propose specific legislation regarding the crime of terrorist financing. This can in no way be construed as a lack of commitment on the part of Ecuador to the fight against this illicit activity.

The foreign minister and the attorney general also stressed that in the past Ecuador had already worked on the drafting of a Bill of Law against Terrorist Financing. This bill was sent to the National Congress for debate by former President of Ecuador Dr. Alfredo Palacio Gonz?lez on July 7, 2006.

They also highlighted the steps taken by Ecuador to continue in its fight against the crime of money laundering, including those that may be related with terrorism. Accordingly, they consider that a political ratification of a fight already demonstrated in the continued actions executed by Ecuador in view of its international commitment is unnecessary.

The attorney general flatly rejected the possibility that Ecuador may be considered as a country that poses high financial risks or as a non-cooperating country in the international fight against money laundering and terrorist financing.

Finally, the Attorney General Diego Garc?a stressed that although he disagrees with the decision adopted by the Plenary of FATF, which he will ask FATF to reconsider, he will continue promoting the efforts that are currently being made to achieve compliance with the 40 + 9 Recommendations of FATF, pursuant to the engagement assumed by Ecuador as member country of the Financial Action Task Force of South America ― GAFISUD.

The writer is charge d'affaires at the Embassy of Ecuador.