By George Psyllides
GOVERNMENT Spokesman Kypros Chrysostomides was apparently caught unprepared yesterday after suggesting Cyprus should make representations to the United States over a State Department report that allegedly suggested measures needed to be taken over money laundering.
“I am surprised by this news because as you all know, all the questions submitted by the American government in relations to the situation in Cyprus concerning money laundering have been answered by the Central Bank and the MOKAS (Covert Crime Fighting Unit) to the satisfaction of the American authorities,” Chrysostomides said.
He added: “I think that a representation is in order.”
But in a written statement, MOKAS said the International Narcotics Control Strategy Report was positive and fair for Cyprus.
And everything included in the report on Cyprus “portrayed the measures taken by the Republic against money laundering, as well as the financing of terrorism, in an impartial way.
“They also fully correspond to the facts handed over to the US authorities by MOKAS and the Central Bank for the preparation of the report.
“In general the report is positive for the Republic of Cyprus and its services; what is mentioned at the end of the report is the need to secure the effective enforcement of the measures, a suggestion usually included in these reports,” the MOKAS statement said.
The report, compiled by the State Department’s Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, concludes: “Although Cyprus has criminalised money laundering for all serious crime, and passed additional legislation necessary to construct a viable anti-money laundering regime, the Government of Cyprus should take steps to ensure its implementation of these laws”.
The report also advises the government to regulate its charitable and non-profit entities in order not to be vulnerable to abuse by organised crime and misuse by terrorist organisations.
The report makes a brief mention of the billions of dollars illegally transferred out of Yugoslavia by former president Slobodan Milosevic’s regime, but recognises the island;s willingness to co-operate.
“…some of these funds (are) believed to have been transferred through Cyprus.
“By April 2001, the Government of Cyprus had turned over documents to the international war crimes tribunal in The Hague concerning possible money laundering by Milosevic and his associates,” the report said.
On the other hand, the report suggested there was strong evidence of a growing trade in drugs with Turkey and Britain as well as of significant money laundering activities going on in the occupied north.
“’TRNC’ officials believe that the 21 essentially unregulated, and primarily Turkish-mainland owned casinos, are the primary vehicles through which money laundering occurs,” the report said.
“…it is clear that ‘TRNC’ regulations fail to provide effective protection against the risk of money laundering.
“The major weakness continues to be the ‘TRNC’s’ many casinos, where a lack of resources and expertise leave that area, for all intends and purposes, unregulated, and therefore especially vulnerable to money laundering abuse,” the report said.
Concerning the drugs scene, the report said the “small population of soft-core drug users continues to grow slowly”.
The report said cannabis was the most commonly used drugs, followed by heroin, cocaine and ecstasy, all of which were available in major towns.
But the report stressed the authorities’ low tolerance of drugs and heavy penalties imposed.
It also noted the authorities’ continued co-operation with the US Drug Enforcement Agency office in Nicosia and their aggressive pursue of drug seizures, arrests, and prosecutions for drug violations.
The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.
