It has been a long-standing policy of Myanmar to condemn any act of terrorism in
all its forms ... At the regional level, Myanmar signed the ASEAN Convention on.
Special Meeting of the Counter-Terrorism Committee on Preventing and Suppressing Terrorist Financing (New York, 20 November 2012) Session II: Regional and national experiences in effectively preventing and suppressing terrorist financing National Experience of Myanmar
It has been a long-standing policy of Myanmar to condemn any act of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. Myanmar has demonstrated its commitment to the fight against terrorism through its growing participation in the regional and international instruments. Myanmar has so far become a party to eleven international counter-terrorism instruments, and a signatory to one such instrument. The Government is also looking at the possibility of signing or acceding to other relevant international or regional instruments. As part of its efforts in preventing and suppressing terrorist financing, Myanmar enacted the Control on Money-Laundering Law in 2002 and ratified the International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism in 2006. At the regional level, Myanmar signed the ASEAN Convention on Counter-Terrorism (ACCT) in 2007 which laid a framework for greater regional cooperation in combating international terrorism. The Plan of Action for ACCT has been put in place to serve as a good example in counter-terrorism measures. Myanmar also enacted the Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Law in 2004 and ratified the ASEAN Treaty on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters in 2009. These are some of the significant achievements made by Myanmar in this particular area together with other ASEAN Member States. Myanmar’s regional cooperation in the area goes beyond Southeast Asia. With a view to effectively preventing and suppressing terrorism financing also at the South Asian region, Myanmar became a state party to the BIMSTEC Convention on Combating Terrorism, Transnational Organized Crime and Illicit Drug Trafficking since 2009.
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At the national level, Myanmar has already established the Central Control Bodies and the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) to oversee the issue. We have also joined the Asia Pacific Group on Money Laundering as a member. These measures will significantly contribute to our efforts in preventing financing of terrorist activities and transnational crimes. Thanks to the recent political and economic reforms in Myanmar and subsequent warming of relations with the international community, the Government is now in a position to make consultations seeking assistance from the International Organizations as well as from the United States for the capacity building of AML/CFT (Anti-Money Laundering/ Combating the financing of Terrorism) of the FIU. Like other developing countries, Myanmar is in need of financial assistance and technical know-how in combating terrorism financing. Provision of assistance for capacity building of developing countries is essential for its greater success. Due to the restrictions imposed by some countries, Myanmar had limited access to training and assistance in the areas of money-laundering and terrorism financing for decades. For the success of our fight against terrorist financing, special attention should be paid to the preventive and capacity-building measures, especially for the developing countries. Myanmar stands ready to cooperate with the relevant UN bodies and extend its support for the international fight against terrorism. The Ministry of Home Affairs and other line Ministries have been cooperating in information sharing and collection not to give a chance to the terrorists and their related organizations to engage their illegal activities on the soil of Myanmar. However, Myanmar is still facing some difficulties and challenges in participating in the global network in suppressing the financing of terrorism. Myanmar is cooperating with the Office of the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED) in pursuant to the relevant UNSC resolutions namely; UNSC resolutions 1373 (2001) and 1624 (2005) on counter-terrorism including drafting of counter-terrorism and moneylaundering laws. A draft law on counter-terrorism is being developed with technical assistance and suggestions from the IMF and the UNODC. After its enactment, Myanmar would be in a position to effectively prevent and suppress terrorism financing. In this regard, Myanmar looks forward to working more closely with other Member States both at the regional and international level in fighting against terrorist financing.
