Thousands More 'Panama Papers' Documents to Be Made Public
Online Database Will Have Thousands of Panama Papers Documents Available
— -- Thousands of documents relating to more than 200,000 offshore entities named in the "Panama Papers" will be made available to the public in an online database on Monday.
The leaked data comes from nearly four decades of archives from a Panamanian law firm specialized in offshore entities, Mossack Fonseca, who denies any wrongdoing.
Last week, the firm issued a "cease and desist" order to the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), who are publishing the material, saying that this public access to the information violates attorney-client privilege.
However, it appears that the ICIJ have decided to proceed with their plan to publish the data. According to a statement from the ICIJ, it includes information about "companies, trusts, foundations and funds incorporated in 21 tax havens", linking to "people in more than 200 countries and territories."
"Users will be able to search through the data and visualize the networks around thousands of offshore entities," the ICIJ states, "including, when available, Mossack Fonseca’s internal records of the company’s true owners."
The ICIJ warns in the statement that they will only publish "selected and limited information" that they deem "in the public interest" and will not include records of bank accounts and financial transactions, emails and other correspondence, passports and telephone numbers.
The anonymous source of the information, John Doe, made a statement last week released by the ICIJ.
"Income inequality is one of the defining issues of our time," the statement said, asking why its "sudden acceleration" has many people "helpless to stop its steady growth."
"The Panama Papers provide a compelling answer to these questions: massive, pervasive corruption," John Doe wrote.
As a result of the leak, authorities around the world have launched investigations into possible illegal activity among various companies and public figures. Iceland's Prime Minister Sigmundur Davíð Gunnlaugsson resigned last month amid accusations that he and his wife created a shell company in the British Virgin Islands that created a conflict of interest.