This legal instrument, initiated by the Government, was approved in general terms and unanimously during the extraordinary plenary session of the National Assembly.
The legislative initiative aims to establish the system of powers and competences regarding the designation, removal and internal or international exemption of individuals, groups and entities for the application of measures to combat terrorism, the financing of terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.
The Minister of Justice and Human Rights, Marcy Lopes, who presented the law to parliament, stressed that its update aims to comply with a guideline from the FATF "resulting from the assessment that the country was subject to a few years ago".
According to the minister, the law also aims to define and operationalize mechanisms "more efficient for implementing targeted financial sanctions".
For the deputy of the Social Renewal Party (PRS), Benedito Daniel, the amendment of this law "is another fundamental step in the framework of strengthening the stability of the national financial system".
Amélia Pinto, a member of parliament for the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), considered the measure to be an essential political instrument that guides national bodies in strengthening compliance and effectiveness of the national system for combating money laundering.
The parliamentary group of the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) was represented by deputy Custódio Kamuango, who highlighted the importance of the law and questioned the effectiveness of the system for combating money laundering given Angola's presence on the FATF's "grey list".
In response to the UNITA deputy, Marcy Lopes stated that Angola's presence on the FATF's "grey list" for enhanced monitoring – announced at the end of last October – obliges the State to adopt a series of procedures from this body.
The minister pointed to the recent approval of a presidential decree approving the organic statute of the Institute for the Supervision of Community Activities, "a body with the purpose of monitoring and supervising the activities of associations and non-governmental organisations", as one of the various legislative actions in response to the FATF's recommendations.
The deputies also approved this Thursday, in general terms and unanimously, the proposed law to amend the law on the Ombudsman's Office with the aim of bringing its organization and functioning into line with the Constitution and the Angolan legal system.
