30 Jun 2006: ISS Today: USA: Treasury Secretly Tries to Track Terror Financing
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It has recently come to light that the US Treasury has secretly been probing international financial records of money transfers between banks worldwide, which are recorded by the global routing network, the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT). SWIFT messages typically include names and account numbers of customers who are sending or receiving funds. The controversial Terrorist Finance Tracking Program, which is run out of the Central Intelligence Agency and overseen by the Treasury Department, has been going on for a number of years without the knowledge of most banks or their customers. It is supposed to monitor the activities of suspected terrorists and map terrorist webs.  The program forms part of aggressive measures adopted by the Bush administration since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
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Commentary
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While it is still early days, these revelations have raised concerns that these surveillance measures circumvent traditional safeguards against abuse, and raise concerns about privacy issues, not just for American citizens, but for the international community, as SWIFT is a repository of international data. It is also worrying that the Treasury Department uses administrative subpoenas, which are secret and not reviewed by judges or grand juries, and therefore lack independent oversight. Since no other country is officially privy to this programme, it also raises issues of whether there are any safeguards regarding security of such data, problems of who has access to it and whether there is potential for abuse, as well as questions of what eventually happens to the data. Protection of the right to privacy is an important constitutional right recognised internationally. While it is not absolute, in general, limitations to this right are imposed by laws, which also endeavour to extend adequate safeguards against abuse or misuse of personal information.Â
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This programme also poses a challenge to financial institutions, which have traditionally borne the burden compliance to counter money laundering and combat terrorist financing. It is perhaps understandable why this industry should ask if it is justifiable to continue to expend time and financial resources if the government is going to go behind its back to obtain the same data. The question of mounting costs for banks of combating money laundering and terrorist financing has long been an issue, with questions being asked as to whether the costs justify the perceived benefits. Amidst the controversy is the paradox that anecdotal information points towards only marginal success of this programme against Al Qaeda.
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Nomzi Gwintsa
