[Editorial] Real Purpose of Smashing Money Laundering Law

The legislation of the money laundering prohibition law has been delayed because of the lawmakers who are afraid of exposing their origins of the political funds. The `bizarre` compromise seemed to have come out of the ruling and opposing parties, but it turned back to scratch. The small committee comprised of 9 representatives from both parties, temporarily agreed to exclude the political fund from the bill and to allow the account probe unlimitedly on 18th, but the Grand National Party (GNP) refuted `the account probe` by a party opinion.

The New Millennium Democratic Party (NMDP) announced yesterday the plan to establish a party opinion including the political fund issue and the account probing right issue, and to attempt to compromise with the opposing party. And unless it reaches agreement with the opposing party, it will decide the bill by vote.

But the NMDP cannot escape the criticisms. The NMDP has not established the agreed opinion about the issue of `the exclusion of the political funds`, and currently, it is trying to jump on the bandwagon on excuse that the GNP strongly opposes the inclusion of the political funds.

If the political funds are excluded from the bill, it will be hard to punish the `crooked` political funds disguising the legal political support or the hidden political funds. Thus far, many political funds investigations have become murky with the origin of laundered money unrevealed.

The GNP has maintained to include the political fund in the bill, and to prevent the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) from the account probe of the political funds. The FIU is supposed to be set up under this new bill. The GNP is afraid of the covert investigation and the suppression against the financial resources of the opposition party. It has been once reported that a representative of the GNP asserted not to allow the account probe in order to prevent from blocking the financial resources prior to the presidential election next year.

But this kind of idea cannot escape the criticisms of the public opinion. First of all, the money laundering prohibition law is necessary to punish the organized crimes or the drug dealers. If the account probing right is blockaded because of the political funds, the people absolutely cannot accept it.

Currently the FIUs of about 50 countries including the U.S. have conducted the account probes by establishing the international cooperative system. If the account probe is not allowed, it will be impossible to reveal the source of the `crooked` money, because the FIU cannot investigate the accounts which are recognized as illegal financial transactions by the financial institutions.

If the political circles genuinely have the volition to separate themselves from the corrupt money, they should take just attitudes beyond their party interests in order to satisfy the demand of the people who live in this era.