New Delhi (NVI): Exiled dissidents from minority communities in China and Pakistan will hold a protest and conference outside the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) headquarters in Paris on February 20 to expose the Pak-China nexus.
The protest will be carried out by members of minority community in Pakistan like Baloch, Pashtuns, Uyghurs, and exiled dissidents from Tibet and Hong Kong community in China.
This is for the first time that those wronged by Pakistan and China will come together in France and unmask the nexus between the two countries to exploit natural resources and engage in massive human rights violations.
The event is being organised by exiled Pakistani journalist Taha Siddiqui and The Dissident Club run by him.
The protest comes as the FATF members meet from February 22 to 25 to decide the fate of Pakistan.
“As the FATF members meet from 22nd to 25th February 2021 to review Pakistan, we will protest in front of the FATF Headquarters to remind the international monitoring body of its commitments to stop terror financing, money laundering and financial corruption in Pakistan and its ally China,” The Dissident Club said in a statement.
#EXCLUSIVE: On 20 Feb, #Baloch, #Pashtun, #Uyghur, #Tibet, #HongKong exiled dissidents will hold protest+conference outside @FATFNews HQ in #Paris to expose Pak-China nexus. FIRST time those wronged by #Pakistan & #China come together in France! Event page https://t.co/ORt5RJAbe9 pic.twitter.com/5IWprKPtnF
— Taha Siddiqui (@TahaSSiddiqui) February 14, 2021
The FATF must hold Pakistan accountable and not give it a free pass because of China’s pressure and economic blackmail of the West. Following the protest, Baloch, Pashtun, Uyghur, Tibet, and Hong Kong community organizers will hold a private conference at the DISSIDENT club to decide on a joint future plan of action,” it added.
Pertinent to mention here that in June 2017, FATF referred Pakistan to Asia/Pacific Group for Money Laundering (APG) and sought a report to address concerns that Pakistan was not fully complying with curbs against terrorist entities designated under the UNSC 1267 committee.
In February 2018, the US, along with its close European allies, proposed that Pakistan be placed on the FATF ‘grey list’ for failing to comply with FATF guidelines on AML/CFT.
FATF placed Pakistan in the ‘grey list’ in June 2018. Since that time, Pakistan has adopted a three-pronged approach to get out of the FATF watchlist, and prevent itself from sliding into the ‘black list’.
Meanwhile, as the deadline for FATF listing approaches Pakistan, it has once again ramped up its deception games to convince the financial watchdog that it has tightened anti-money laundering and counter financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) regimes.
-ARK
