Georgetown: The Chambers of the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) held a workshop recently targeting members of the Judiciary to discuss the confiscation of the proceeds of crime, a seminar that Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs Anil Nandlall deems timely.
“This initiative and an intervention of this nature could not have come at a more timely and opportune moment,” stated Minister Nandall. He said that the guide which he deems to be well-researched will fill a void.
He added that it is public knowledge that the issue of money laundering has assumed a particular importance in Guyana recently. “Guyana has, and is being monitored by the Caribbean Financial Taskforce on Money Laundering and the financing of counter-terrorism and stringent obligations have been imposed on Guyana as a member state,” he said.
For instance, Guyana has to submit semi-annual reports to that governing body, supervisory mechanisms have been established to monitor and observe the activities of the agencies connected with financial affairs and a very high-level team was dispatched to Guyana to examine the progress made and then make further recommendations which included certain amendments to the substantive legislation.
“We know we were given a timeline to effect the passage of these amendments in the Parliament… on May 27 this was supposed to have been reported at a meeting in Nicaragua and we were unable to do so,” Minister Nandlall posited.
He added that the Bill is still in Parliament and with the Select Committee. “The government is absolutely committed to ensure that that bill is passed within the requisite time frame,” Minister Nandlall stated. He noted that Guyana was granted an extension of time to have those enactments passed for the November meeting of the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force.
“Though the principal Act has been in existence since 2009, we have not seen the desired number of charges instituted and the number of prosecutions embarked upon…and many reasons can be advanced for why that is so. References have been made to the newness of the legislation in this country,” he said.
Regardless of the freshness of the legislation, time is given for the relevant agencies to familiarise themselves with its provisions.
The AG also emphasised that confiscation from proceeds of crime necessarily involves the fundamental rights of the citizens and therefore, there has to be care and circumspection and every action of the relevant agency must meet constitutional approbation.
The workshop dealt with the powers of investigation, restraining of property and assets and penalty, disclosure, monitoring and interception orders as provided for in the Anti-Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism Acts.
Legal Officer, from the office of the Caribbean Criminal Asset Recovery Programme (CCARP) Alex Ferguson prepared the guidelines for those acts.
British High Commissioner Andrew Ayre in his remarks noted that organised crime is about financial gain and outweighs possibilities of being caught and prosecuted, in this regard the Caribbean and South America have been affected by organised crime, particularly drug trafficking.
He explained that for criminals, prosecution is an occupational hazard and they are prepared to pay fines and even serve time prison because they know that their assets are protected. He pointed out that most of the English speaking Caribbean have had proceeds of crime legislation for more than 20 years, but it is rarely used to confiscate the assets of convicted criminals, and this has encouraged crime to escalate particularly in the trafficking of cocaine which brings in the most profits.
“The World Drug Report 2010 indicates that drug trafficking is at US $320B per year…this highlights the significant challenges that small states face as they commit precious resources to fight criminals involved in drug trafficking and money laundering,” Commissioner Ayre said. In this regard, the application of the legislation would deter youths from being tempted to enter into/participate in illegal activities.
Importantly, the CCARP has committed to supporting law enforcement agencies to confiscate the assets of criminals in Guyana and the Caribbean, and to seize at least US $8M in proceeds from crime during the period 2011-2015.
Chancellor of the Judiciary (ag) Carl Singh in recognition of the new legislation (Anti-Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism Acts) noted the need for self education. Having perused the guide, the Chancellor acknowledged that it is of great interest and benefit to those involved.
He emphasised that equipping prosecutors with the skills and knowledge of the law has been frequently canvassed in the courts. The Chancellor illustrated that some years ago a former Chancellor identified a possible reason for why there was a high prosecution failure rate in the Courts and he attributed it to among other factors ill-equipped, ill-trained and junior status of police officers who go against senior lawyers.
Director of Public Prosecutions, Shalimar Ali-Hack in her presentation explained while the Anti-Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism Acts are relatively new and are areas legal professionals are not accustomed to, “I say different because this is one piece of legislation where provision is made for both criminal charges as well as application to be made in the High Court and Civil jurisdiction,” she said. Further, this can be termed a hybrid system that goes full circle.
The workshop was held under the auspices of the British High Commission which has also given support to other countries in the Caribbean. The Commission has set up the CCARP which is based in Barbados.
The DPP emphasised that once everyone has been trained and understands the legislation it is hoped that they will work together in the interest of the criminal justice system.
She highlighted that the objectives of the guide are to assist the prosecutors in their duties as it provides a summary of offences of money laundering and indictable offices for terrorists financing, it makes provision for minor offences such as persons disclosing information, and failure to comply with a production order. In addition, it makes provision for the confiscation of property with the DPP being tasked with this job.
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