Natural Resources and Violent Conflict - WaterWiki.net

follow the money 197lawful purpose, their background and purpose should, as far as possible,be examined, and the findings should be established in writing and beavailable to help supervisors, auditors, and law enforcement agencies.Other Measures to Monitor, Detect, and Prosecute Illicit Trafficking.Countries should consider implementing feasible measures to detect ormonitor the physical cross-border transportation of specific commodities.They should consider the feasibility and utility of a system wherebanks and other financial institutions and intermediaries report all domesticand international currency transactions above a fixed amount toa national central agency with a computerized database, available tocompetent authorities for use in money laundering cases and subjectto strict safeguards to ensure proper use of the information.Countries should further encourage firms to develop modern andsecure techniques of commodity management, including increased useof checks, payment cards, direct deposit of salary checks, and book entryrecording of securities to encourage the replacement of cash transfers.Countries should take notice of the potential for abuse of shellcorporations by money launderers and should consider whether additionalmeasures are required to prevent unlawful use of such entities.Implementation and Role of Regulatory and Other AdministrativeAuthorities. The authorities supervising firms should ensure that thesupervised institutions have adequate programs to guard against traffickingin illicitly extracted resources. These authorities should cooperatewith and, on request, lend expertise to other domestic judicial orlaw enforcement authorities in money laundering investigations andprosecutions.The authorities should establish guidelines to assist firms in detectingsuspicious patterns of behavior by their customers. It is understoodthat such guidelines must develop over time, will never be exhaustive,and will primarily serve as an educational tool for the personnel offinancial institutions.The authorities regulating or supervising financial institutionsshould take the necessary legal or regulatory steps to guard againstcontrol or acquisition of a significant participation in firms by criminalsor their confederates, including any person or entity found tohave been involved in illicit resource extraction.Strengthening of International CooperationInternational cooperation needs to be strengthened in the followingareas: (a) administrative cooperation; (b) exchange of information relatingto suspicious transactions; (c) cooperation in confiscation, mutual