Miftah Ismail, Adviser to the Prime Minister on Finance, has claimed that the decision of the Financial Action Task Force to put Pakistan on ‘grey list’ will have little impact on the national economy, but the organization has violated its own rules and procedures under the pressure of the United States. The adviser confirmed Pakistan would be placed on the ‘grey list’ in June, but ruled out any possibility that the country would be placed on the ‘black list’ in the next stage. The whole world knows India and its allies are behind this move and they always scramble to damage the interests of Pakistan. Despite the words of hope by the adviser, the grey list dilemma will cause embarrassment for the country on the international level. However, the economy of Pakistan is resilient and it will survive the shock. The world should not forget that Pakistan itself is a victim of terrorism and it cannot facilitate terror financing or money laundering in any case.
Earlier, Pakistan remained on the ‘black list’ of the Task Force during 2008-10 and on the ‘grey list’ for three years from 2012 to 2015. The current move is seen as a pressure tactic of the United States and India is the driving force behind it. The government has already sent a financial report to the international body with details of the steps taken against suspicious transactions and groups allegedly operating in the country. President Mamnoon Hussain has promulgated an ordinance to amend the Anti-Terrorism Act and to declare the groups as terrorist organisations sanctioned by the UN Security Council. The government has also assumed the control of various charity organizations.
It is good omen that the government is doing its best to stave off the move, but the national leadership will have to take clear stand on various regional and international issues. The US administration is facing defeat in Kabul and it wants to blame Pakistan for its failure to pacify its public back home. Pakistan has to keep its own house in order to foil conspiracies of India and other hostile countries. The Afghan government, which fully depends on the US military, has failed to come up with a strategy to maintain peace in that country. It is also unfortunate that Pakistan is unfairly being dragged into terror financing thing and it will serve no purpose.
