LONDON/PANAMA CITY: Governments across the world began investigating possible financial wrongdoing by the rich and powerful on Monday following a leak of documents from a Panamanian law firm, which allegedly showed how clients avoided tax or laundered money.
The documents detailed schemes involving an array of figures from friends of Russian President Vladimir Putin to relatives of the prime ministers of Britain, Iceland and Pakistan and as well as the president of Ukraine, journalists who received them said.
While the “Panama Papers” detail complex financial arrangements benefitting the world’s elite, they do not necessarily mean the schemes were all illegal.
The Kremlin said the documents contained “nothing concrete and nothing new” while a spokesman for British Prime Minister David Cameron said his late father’s reported links to an offshore company were a “private matter.”
Iceland’s Prime Minister Sigmundur Gunnlaugsson could not immediately be reached for comment on the naming of his wife in connection with a secretive company in an offshore haven, which brought opposition calls for him to resign.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has not commented on his reported offshore links.
Opponents said Poroshenko should be impeached for allegedly transfering his confectionary business to an offshore company in 2014, amid fierce fighting between Ukraine and pro-Russian separatists. A senior official from the General Prosecutor’s office said there was no evidence he had committed a crime.
Australia, New Zealand, India, France and Austria were among countries, which said they had begun investigating the allegations, based on more than 11.5 million documents from law firm Mossack Fonseca, located in the tax haven of Panama. Banks as well as individual clients came under the spotlight.
The documents were leaked to the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) and more than 100 other news organizations. Mossack Fonseca has denied any wrongdoing.
The material covers a period over almost 40 years, from 1977 until last December, and allegedly show that some companies domiciled in tax havens were being used for suspected money laundering, arms and drug deals, and tax evasion.
Britain’s Guardian newspaper said the documents showed a network of secret offshore deals and loans worth $2 billion led to close friends of Putin, including concert cellist Sergie Rolddugin. Reuters could not confirm those details.
Putin’s spokesman dismissed the reports, saying they aimed to discredit him ahead of upcoming elections.
“This Putinophobia abroad has reached such a point that it is in fact taboo to say something good about Russia, or about any actions by Russia or any Russian achievements. But it’s a must to say bad things, a lot of bad things, and when there’s nothing to say, it must be concocted. This is evident to us.”
The publications contained “nothing concrete and nothing new” about Putin, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
The British government asked for a copy of the leaked data, which could be embarrassing for Prime Minister Cameron, who has spoken out against tax evasion and tax avoidance.
His late father, Ian Cameron, is mentioned in the files, alongside some members of his Conservative Party in the upper house of parliament, former Conservative lawmakers and party donors, British media said.
Jennie Granger, director general of enforcement and compliance at HM Revenue and Customs, said the government had a great deal of information from a wide range of sources.
“We will closely examine this data and will act on it swiftly and appropriately,” she said.Cameron’s spokeswoman declined to comment on whether the leader’s family had money invested in offshore funds set up by his father, saying it was a “private matter.”
Tax authorities in Australia and New Zealand said they were probing local clients of Mossack Fonseca.
The head of Mossack Fonseca, Ramon Fonseca, has denied any wrongdoing but said his firm had suffered a successful but “limited” hack on its database. He described the hack and leak as “an international campaign against privacy.”
Fonseca, who was up until March a senior government official in Panama, said that the firm, which specializes in setting up offshore companies, has formed more than 240,000 such companies, the “vast majority” used for “legitimate purposes.”
World figures deny wrongdoing as ‘Panama Papers’ turn spotlight on tax
World figures deny wrongdoing as ‘Panama Papers’ turn spotlight on tax
Stranded in paradise: Mideast war traps thousands in Bali
- Limited flights from UAE begin as governments seek to extract citizens from Middle East
- At least 4,400 people had flights to Doha, Dubai and Abu Dhabi canceled between Saturday and Monday
DENPASAR, LONDON, BERLIN: Passengers stranded on the Indonesian resort island of Bali clamored for flight news on Tuesday as the outbreak of war in the Middle East grounded planes and turned a tropical holiday dream into an ordeal for many.
Hundreds were crowded at Ngurah Rai International Airport, many dressed in shorts, flip-flops and summer dresses, their expressions dour.
Many sat on the floor, exhausted, and one man repeatedly hit a wall in frustration. “I just kind of want to see my family ... right now it’s a bit stressful,” British tourist Adam Woo, transiting through Bali after holidaying on the neighboring island of Lombok, said. The 23-year-old student said he saw the missiles start flying on the news “and I was a bit worried about my flight” — especially after Dubai airport was hit in Iran’s response to a US-Israeli attack.
“Obviously, everyone around the world at the moment is kind of stuck,” said Woo. “All the travel agencies are swamped with people calling in. So, it’s literally impossible to even get on the phone with someone.”
He said he was looking for an alternative flight via China.
Around Woo, many at the airport were lugging around heavy luggage with slumped shoulders, frustration etched on many a face.
Many queued on foot and on chairs outside information centers hoping for news on replacement flights, receiving occasional briefings with little news.
The airport’s immigration office said in a statement at least 4,400 people had flights to Doha, Dubai and Abu Dhabi canceled between Saturday and Monday.
With would-be passengers at risk of overstaying their visas, the Bali immigration office introduced a same-day emergency stay permit free of charge for affected foreigners.
Thirty-five have applied so far, according to immigration head Felucia Sengky Ratna.
Airports company Angkasa Pura said 15 flights from Bali to Doha and Abu Dhabi, and vice versa, have been canceled between Saturday and Monday.
National carrier Garuda Indonesia has grounded all flights to Doha until further notice.
Meanwhile, stranded travelers began departing the UAE aboard a small number of evacuation flights on Monday, even as most commercial air traffic across the Middle East remained suspended.
The limited flights out of Dubai and Abu Dhabi took place as the US State Department urged its own citizens in 13 countries, including UAE, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Lebanon and Oman, to “depart now via commercial means due to serious safety risks.”
Sweeping airspace closures and flight cancelations across the region left many fewer options for heeding the advice.
The State Department has evacuated non-emergency personnel and families in six nations, adding the UAE to its list on Tuesday.
In Italy, the government has assisted with flights to Milan and Rome in the wake of mounting criticism against Defense Minister Guido Crosetto.
The minister sparked a political controversy at home after being stuck in Dubai with his family during the initial phase of the attack on Iran.
Crosetto returned to Rome on Sunday on a military aircraft. The left-wing opposition has called for Crosetto’s resignation, saying he should not have traveled to the Middle East during a crisis.
