413 In Ethiopia, the issue of money laundering has taken on a sense of urgency in view of current global and regional terrorist concerns. In the past, the term ‘money laundering’ was applied only to financial transactions related to organised crime. Today, its definition is often expanded by government and international regulators to mean any financial transaction that generates an asset or a value through an illegal act, which may involve actions such as tax evasion or false accounting. 414 The major forms of money laundering in Ethiopia are believed to be drug trafficking, tax evasion, and human trafficking. But an emerging issue of concern is cyber theft – that is, theft conducted by penetrating the computer systems of banks. According to the CSAR, cyber theft was said to be increasing in magnitude and sophistication as the banking industry continues to expand. Cyber theft and money laundering activities pose serious dangers not only to the strength of Ethiopia’s financial system, but also to global security. The current ability of money launderers to penetrate virtually any financial system makes every jurisdiction a potential money laundering centre. 415 According to the already existing penal code, money laundering is a criminal offence in Ethiopia. However, under the penal code, no specific institution was created to execute the law. Moreover, the penal code lacks specific details based on international conventions or standards to prevent financial crime. Although there is the prevention and suppression of money laundering and the financing of terrorism proclamation, No. 657/2009, the GoE has to find more ways of strengthening existing legislation to fight money laundering. According to the information availed to the CRM, Ethiopian authorities have been discussing the Anti-Money Laundering (AML) regime proposals in order to control money laundering since 2004. 416 To strengthen the current law on money laundering, the National Bank of Ethiopia drafted a bill on money laundering which was endorsed by the Council of Ministers on 19 June 200928 and passed into law by the Ethiopian Parliament in November 2009. The new law criminalises the practice of money-laundering and includes a provision that establishes a Financial Intelligence Unit. A provision in the new law also obliges depositors to disclose the source of their money when depositing or transferring funds. 417 The current bill was first scheduled to be approved by Parliament in 2006, together with the Counterterrorism bill which, too, is awaiting legislative action by Parliament. Once approved, this new piece of legislation will bring Ethiopia in line with international standards on anti-money laundering activities. 28 The law is derived from the experiences of the IMF and the United Nations Convention against the Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substance. - 169 -