
By RAYMUND B. VILLANUEVA
Kodao Productions/Bulatlat.com
MANILA — A human rights lawyers’ group asked the visiting Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to look into how the Philippine government conducts “systematic repression” against civil society organizations (CSOs), development workers and human rights defenders using the global task force’s own recommendations.
The National Union of People’s Lawyers (NUPL) held a picket in front of the Department of Justice on Monday as FATF representatives visited the agency to bring attention to the “incalculable damage” the Philippine government’s anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing policies have against organizations that serve the poor.
The NUPL said that FATF’s own recommendations on targeted financial sanctions and non-profit organizations have been weaponized “to suppress dissent and erode civic freedoms.”
It is based on these recommendations that the Philippine government enacted the Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020 (Republic Act No. 11479) and the Terrorism Financing Prevention and Suppression Act of 2012 (Republic Act No. 10168) in addition to “invasive and burdensome regulatory measures that have been used more to institutionalize repression than address genuine financial crimes,” the group said.
The NUPL sought to present both an open letter and a civil society report on the “misuse and abuse” of countering terrorism financing measures by Philippine authorities.
The lawyers’ group revealed that FATF-inspired measures have disproportionately harmed CSOs in the country as over 60 percent of surveyed organizations reported red-tagging, harassment and surveillance under the pretext of both laws.
NUPL added that many CSOs are facing physical surveillance and accusations of terrorism financing as well as “burdensome regulations from banks, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Bureau of Internal Revenue.
Such additional measures have hindered CSO operations, with some experiencing frozen accounts and restricted access to financial services, the rights defenders said.
Operations of organizations such as the Rural Missionaries of the Philippines and Community Empowerment Resource Network have been paralyzed due to the freezing of their bank accounts on orders of the government’s Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC).

“[F]inancial exclusion due to invasive regulations by banks and financial institutions is denying resources not only to CSOs and their staff but also to their poor beneficiaries and marginalized communities,” the group said.
Aside from the AMLC, the Anti-Terrorism Council also froze personal bank accounts of current and former political detainees and National Democratic Front peace consultants such as Vicente Ladlad and Rey Claro Casambre who both complained of being denied the means to buy medication for various illnesses.
Also imprisoned undergoing trial under the anti-terror financial law is community journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio and church worker Marielle Domequil in Tacloban City.
Representatives of the FATF are currently in the Philippines to assess the sustainability of the government’s anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing regime.
Created by Western powers including the G7, the European Commission and eight other countries in July 1989, the FATF is an inter-government mechanism that monitors jurisdictions for money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation financing.
The NUPL and CSOs victimized by asset freezing however said the Philippine government is fixated on “arbitrary quotas,” such as the number of terrorism financing cases filed pursuant to the confidential ‘Project Exit Grey List,’ that has led to a surge in “baseless prosecutions that are built largely on perjured evidence.”
“Many of these cases, including those that have made it to court, have been dismissed for lack of probable cause,” the NUPL’s report read.
The lawyers added that Philippine authorities only have “overly broad and vague definitions of terrorism under current terror laws” that provide a pretext for sweeping actions against CSOs.
Ironically, many of the penalized CSOs are recipients of international awards for their programs to uplift marginalized sectors, including those devastated by disasters, the human rights lawyers pointed out.
In their report, the NUPL called on the task force to ensure that its review processes focus not only on numbers but also on the injury caused by its recommendations to real people and communities.
“The impact of FATF standards on fundamental freedoms and human rights must be front and center in any evaluation. Specifically, we urge the FATF to make the review process transparent and inclusive, to reassess its recommendations holistically, and to reverse the harmful consequences caused by its recommendations,” the report read.
NUPL said the FATF should:
- Open up the process to include civil society participation and input, ensuring that the voices of those most affected by these measures are heard and considered;
- Conduct a comprehensive review of all FATF recommendations to identify and mitigate the systemic damage they may have caused, particularly in repressive contexts; and
- Take a long, hard look at the tangible impacts of FATF recommendations and institute changes to reverse or halt their grievous effects on civil society and marginalized communities.
“The FATF must ensure that its standards do not come at the expense of democracy, civic freedoms, and human rights. We urge you to reflect on their real-world consequences and act decisively to prevent further harm,” the NUPL concluded. (RVO) Reposted by Bulatlat