ANTI-MONEY LAUNDERING LAW TAKES SIGNIFICANT STEP

UNCLAS CASABLANCA 000851 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR NEA/MAG, EB/IFD, S/CT AND NEA/OFI E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ECON EFIN KTFN PTER MO SUBJECT: ANTI-MONEY LAUNDERING LAW TAKES SIGNIFICANT STEP FORWARD REF: A. CASABLANCA 00523 ¶B. CASABLANCA 000676 ¶C. CASABLANCA 00633 This document is sensitive but unclassified - please protect accordingly. ¶1. (U) On July 20th, the Ministerial Council presided over by King Mohammed VI approved Morocco's long-awaited draft Anti-Money Laundering (AML) legislation. The royally-approved draft law can now be presented to Parliament when it convenes in the second week of October. Both the upper and lower chambers of parliament will have the opportunity to discuss the draft before voting on it. Within thirty days of parliamentary passage, the legislation will then be sent to the Royal Palace to receive the King's final seal. Only then can the legislation be published in the official gazette and become law. Given the time required to complete these next steps, we expect implementation of AML no earlier than spring 2007. ¶2. (SBU) Comment: AML passage and implementation remain the missing pieces in Morocco's counter-terrorism finance efforts. The draft bill has languished for several years in inter-ministerial consideration. However, approval of the bill by the royally convened Council of Ministers is a significant step forward for this long-awaited piece of legislation. That said, banking contacts continue to warn of AML's potential negative impact on Morocco's large informal sector. Banking contacts tell us that even if AML does enter into force in early 2007, implementation will be difficult and we can expect an unspecified "adjustment period" before the law can be considered fully in effect. End Comment GREENE