Global pressures and sanctions were levied upon Pakistan to act against terror groups.
Despite of international sanctionsLakshar terrorist Hafiz Saeed has remained largely free in Pakistan.
What are the international pressures on Pakistan?
Financial Action Task Force (FATF) is an inter-governmental body which has set standards for regulatory measures to combat money laundering and terror financing.
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Plenary decided to put Pakistan back on the “grey list”. Click here to know more
By this Pakistan will subject to direct monitoring and intense scrutiny by the International Co-operation Review Group (ICRG) on terror financing, pending further review in June 2018.
China and Saudi Arabia voted against Pakistan at the FATF, and India succeeded in shaping global opinion against Pakistan.
The US has compelled Pakistan to initiate stringent action against terror groups.
For which US piloted a resolution against Pakistan to put it in the global terror finance watch list.
What is the status of Hafiz Saeed in Pakistan?
Hafiz Saeed is the founder andforemost leader of the Lashkar terrorist group.
In 2008 Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists killed more than 150 people at multiple locations across Mumbai.
Despite international sanctions on the Lashkar and sustained global pressure on Pakistan to act against terrorist groups, Hafiz Saeed has remained largely free.
He intends to join mainstream politics and is scheduled to release the manifesto of his party, Milli Muslim League.
He has also challenged government’s decision in court for freezing his bank accounts and taking over assets linked to his organisation under the Anti-Terrorism (Amendment) Ordinance, 2018.
What are the actions taken by Pak onterror groups?
Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Jamaat-ud-Dawa(JuD) and Falah-i-lnsaniyat Foundation (FIF) are placed under Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997.
They have also attracted sanctions under the United Nations Security Council Resolution and have been dealt accordingly.
To avoid grey-listing, Pakistan promulgated an Ordinance amending the Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997, to include terrorist organisations listed by the UNSC.
Consequently, JuD and FIF were declared as proscribed groups, and all their properties in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan were confiscated.
Election Commission of Pakistan acted on a recommendation by the Pakistan Interior Ministry, citing Milli Muslim League‘s (MML) links with banned militant outfits.
What moves of Pak concerns global peace makers?
Recently Islamabad High Court set aside the Election Commission’s resolution refusing registration for JuD’s political front, (MML).
Following the HC order MML can contest the parliamentary elections scheduled for July 2018.
Pak’s action against the JuD and FIF was aimed at evading grey listing by the FATF which had created a turmoil in the country.
Lashkar has long been considered a “good” terrorist group by the Pakistan army, which has used it as a proxy against India and Afghanistan.
An influential section in the Army reportedly believes that Hafiz Saeed is too big taking him on directly will have unmanageable consequences.
Thus Limited action against Saeed’s groups is unlikely to satisfy the FATF.
