ENG-2005 — Page 397

Public Order | 343

enacted the Drug Trafficking (Recovery of Proceeds) Ordinance in 1989 and the Organised and Serious Crimes Ordinance in 1994 which provide for the tracing, freezing, confiscation and recovery of the proceeds of drug trafficking and other serious crimes.

Since the enactment of these ordinances, assets valued at $409 million have been confiscated and paid to the Government. As at December 31, 2005, assets amounting to $109 million had been ordered to be confiscated and were pending recovery. A further $1.37 billion was restrained pending confiscation proceedings under these two ordinances.

As an international financial centre, it is important for Hong Kong to maintain an effective anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing regime. Hong Kong is committed to cooperating closely with international organisations and individual governments, both on a multilateral and bilateral basis, to maintain the effectiveness of the global campaign. Hong Kong is a member of the Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering (FATF) as well as a founding member of the Asia/Pacific Group on Money Laundering (APG).

In addition to taking part in the APG annual meeting, the Narcotics Division and other departments played an active role in the APG's typologies exercise, including providing speakers and participating in its annual typologies workshop in Fiji in October. Hong Kong took part in the APG mutual evaluation of India in March and continued to serve as a member of its steering group - an advisory body which sets the direction and priority of the work of the APG — until July.

At the international level, Hong Kong participated in the FATF's mutual evaluation of Ireland in June. In August, Hong Kong joined the newly formed FATF Typologies Project Teams investigating 'new payment methods' and 'misuse of corporate vehicles'. The project teams will work with relevant bodies and organisations of various jurisdictions to examine the potential misuse of these vehicles for money laundering and terrorist financing. In October, Hong Kong also joined the newly formed FATF/APG project group on corruption to explore the link. between corruption, money laundering and terrorist financing.

During the year, work started on putting in place, through administrative and legislative means, the revised FATF Recommendations to reinforce the anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing regime of Hong Kong. It is expected that the implementation will take two to three years to complete. To tie in with the exercise, Hong Kong hosted an international conference in February to promote international and regional exchange and cooperation on anti-money laundering issues. More than 500 delegates, professionals and practitioners from overseas, the Mainland and the local business sector and related fields participated in the event which was opened by the Financial Secretary.

Hong Kong also contributed to FATF's Working Group on Terrorist Financing (renamed the Working Group on Terrorist Financing and Money Laundering in October), which is responsible for drawing up guidance and interpretative notes for implementing nine Special Recommendations on Terrorist Financing. In addition,