12 World Leaders Implicated in Panama Papers Scandal
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Christian Segers, Opinion Editor
On Sunday, April 3, the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) published 11.5 million documents known as the Panama Papers that highlight possible tax evasion and various other offshore discrepancies by people of wealth and power.
Panamanian offshore law firm “Mossack Fonseca” housed the documents on their servers until an “unauthorized” duplicate of the files were obtained. The firm reportedly has represented 240,000 clients under its worldwide reach and insists that the company strives to help others legally manage their assets. The firm’s co-founder, Ramon Fonseca was contacted by Reuters and issued the following statements:
“We have formed more than 240,000 companies throughout our history and the vast majority of these for legitimate purposes. Of course, there are some that end up being used for illegitimate activities but that is not our responsibility because we are not the ones who are managing them.”
Heidi Campbell, the chair of the department of mass communication at North Greenville University, was asked whether or not the release of the Panama papers helps to maintain accountability with current world leaders.
“If money is being hidden because of embezzlement or other types of wrongdoing, then the release of these papers can help to purge corruption,” Campbell said. “However, when this type of information is released it can also make an otherwise crippled society crumble. Ultimately, you have to ask yourself, ‘is it ever right to do wrong in order to do a right?'”
The 2.6 terabytes of data (2,600 gigabytes) were originally delivered to the German newspaper, Süddeutsche Zeitung, via a source that claimed anonymity due to the overarching political and legal consequences of leaking the documents. Upon review, the German publication company handed the files over to the ICIJ because of the impact the leak would have.
“The offshore world really only has one product and that is secrecy and when you take away that product they don’t have anything for sale,” said the director of the ICIJ, Gerard Ryle, who was recently interviewed on CNN Money.
CNN reports that out of the estimated 140 politicians name-checked in the Panama Papers, 12 are national leaders; however, the most controversial figure implicated in the papers is not mentioned once. That figure happens to be Russian President, Vladimir Putin.
Although Putin’s name is not explicitly mentioned, several of his closest friends and associates are repeatedly listed in the leaked documents. The total amount allegedly bankrolled by Putin’s inner circle surpasses $2 billion (U.S. currency).
Media outlets across the globe have been quick to scrutinize Putin’s supposed illegal activity, with the Kremlin insisting that the documentation is simply another westernized attempt at usurping Russia’s newfound political clout.
“They [the United States government] are trying to destabilize us from within in order to make us more compliant,” Putin stated.
Putin is not the only national figurehead struggling to reassert the legitimacy of foreign holdings (or the lack of foreign holdings) after the Panama Papers release.
The Guardian reported that, “Among national leaders with offshore wealth are Nawaz Sharif, Pakistan’s prime minister; Ayad Allawi, ex-interim prime minister and former vice-president of Iraq; Petro Poroshenko, president of Ukraine; Alaa Mubarak, son of Egypt’s former president; and the prime minister of Iceland, Sigmundur Davíð Gunnlaugsson.”
Additionally, the leader of the Conservative Party and British Prime Minister David Cameron have seen increased calls for his resignation following the publication of documents implying he benefitted from a trust fund set up by his deceased father. Cameron has since acknowledged the legitimacy of the report and insists that he has paid taxes on the money he received, but the call for his resignation still continues despite attempts to refocus the national spotlight on other matters of state.
Although it is relatively impossible to quantify the entirety of the global implications regarding such a large leak, it is safe to say that the information dump that arrived last week will serve as a wake up call for politicians who believe their assets are untouchable when placed abroad.
