MALAYSIA`S LEAD IN FIGHTING MONEY LAUNDERING LAUDED

KUALA LUMPUR, July 19 (Bernama) -- Malaysia has demonstrated strong
leadership and made valuable contribution to the fight against money laundering
and terrorism , said Financial Action Task Force (FATF) president Luis
Urrutia Corral.

Corral said his visit to Malaysia in October last year gave him the
opportunity to attest to the very positive influence played by Malaysia
across the region.

"So, my full gratitude and support go to the central bank of Malaysia for
being such an active participant in this area," he said in his recorded
broadcast at the two-day International Conference on Financial Crime and
Terrorism Financing 2010 which opened here Monday.

Corral said the other priority that the FATF had recently looked at
was the fight against corruption.

In this respect, FATF members had agreed that anti-money laundering
instruments could play a very important role in the fight against corruption and
adding value to wider international anti-corruption efforts, he added.

Formed in 1989, the Paris-based FATF is an inter-governmental body entrusted
with the development and promotion of policies at national and international
levels to combat money laundering and terrorist financing.

Corral said the struggle against money laundering and terrorist financing
was by its nature a multi-dimensional and truly global endeavour.

"It is a very wide geographical coverage and its variety of sophisticated
tools give the FATF a unique position in the international fight against
financial crimes," he said.

Some 550 participants from 14 countries are attending the conference.
-- BERNAMA