VOA慢速英语--Mossack Fonseca: Law Firm Behind 'Panama Papers'

Mossack Fonseca: Law Firm Behind 'Panama Papers'

For nearly 40 years, a law firm in Panama helped drug dealers¹, criminals, corrupt² politicians, sports stars and billionaires avoid paying taxes.

A group of investigative journalists said the Mossack Fonseca law firm has helped people from more than 200 countries and territories hide their money.

Those named include 12 current and former world leaders. Among them are the prime ministers of Iceland and Pakistan, the president of Ukraine and the King of Saudi Arabia.

Others are family members of Chinese leaders, associates of the Russian president, Mexican drug gang leaders, people linked to terrorist groups and Iran and North Korea, and FIFA officials.

The Mossack Fonseca law firm was created in Panama in 1986 when Jurgen Mossack -- who was born in Germany in 1948 -- and Ramon Fonseca -- who was born in Panama in 1952 -- combined their two law firms.

Mossack Fonseca is a global company that provides legal services and helps rich people and companies manage their money. It creates and operates companies in Switzerland, Britain, Hong Kong, the British Virgin³ Islands and Malta.

It also operates in the American states of Nevada and Wyoming.

The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, or ICIJ, said the firm is one of the largest providers of these services. The journalists group reported that the firm “has more than 500 employees and collaborators in more than 40 offices around the world, including three in Switzerland and eight in China.”

The ICIJ said the firm earned more than $42 million in 2013.

After the release of the leaked documents known as the “Panama Papers,” Mossack Fonseca said it acted responsibly and obeyed international laws.

In a statement, the firm said “the companies we incorporate are not being used for tax evasion⁶, money-laundering, terrorist financing or other illicit⁷ purposes.” But the firm said “we regret any misuse⁸ of our services and actively⁹ take steps to prevent it.”

The firm told The Washington Post newspaper that it follows “both the letter and spirit” of financial laws, which it notes are different throughout the world. It said that in almost 40 years of operation it has never been charged with criminal acts.

Ramon Fonseca told the French news agency AFP that the leaking of the information is “a crime, a felony. Privacy is a fundamental human right that is being eroded¹¹ more and more in the modern world. Each person has a right to privacy, whether they are a king or a beggar.”

In an hour-long interview on the WhatsApp messaging service, Mr. Fonseca said “at the end of this storm the sky will be blue again and people will find that the only crime is the hacking” of the firm’s documents, The New York Times newspaper reported.

The newspaper also reported that in an email to Mr. Fonseca and others in the firm, Mr. Mossack blamed the firm’s employees in London for not investigating the backgrounds of people the firm helped. He said they were “not doing their due diligence thoroughly¹², (or maybe none at all).”

The ICIJ is a non-profit group based in Washington, DC. More than a year ago, the ICIJ was given 11.5 million documents taken from the law firm. The group did not tell who gave it the documents or why.

It worked with the German newspaper Sueddeutsche Zeitung and more than 100 other news organizations -- including VOA Zimbabwe -- to create the reports.

Putting money in banks in other countries is not always illegal. But the ICIJ says “the documents show that banks, law firms and other(s)…have often failed to follow legal requirements that they make sure their clients are not involved in criminal” acts, illegal tax avoidance or political corruption¹³.

Michael Hudson is a senior editor at ICIJ. He told VOA “this is really the shadow side of our global economy -- the money that flows around mostly unchecked, undetected. You can’t say in every single case that someone is doing something wrong, or that they’re hiding improper¹⁴ practices. But it certainly raises lots of questions about transparency when you have politicians, and especially top leaders of countries, moving their holdings offshore¹⁵ and using offshore entities¹⁶ to obscure what they’re doing.”

Words in This Story

money-laundering – v. to put (money that you got by doing something illegal) into a business or bank account in order to hide where it really came from

illicit – adj. not allowed by law; unlawful or illegal

erode¹⁰ – v. to gradually destroy (something) or to be gradually destroyed by natural forces (such as water, wind or ice); often used figuratively, as in this article

due diligence – n. research and analysis of a company or organization done in preparation for a business transaction (as a corporate⁵ merger¹⁷ or purchase of securities)

firm - n. a business organization or office

gang - n. a group of criminals; a group of young people whose members do illegal things together

manage - v. to direct; to supervise

collaborator⁴ - n. a person who works jointly¹⁸ on an activity or project

incorporate - v. to include something as part of something else; to set up a business

beggar - n. someone who asks others for money or help

interview - n. a meeting at which information is gathered

background - n. information required to fully¹⁹ understand a problem or situation

unchecked - v. unstopped

transparency - n. the quality of state of being open or honest

1 dealers   

n.商人( dealer的名词复数 )；贩毒者；毒品贩子；发牌者

参考例句：

• There was fast bidding between private collectors and dealers. 私人收藏家和交易商急速竞相喊价。
• The police were corrupt and were operating in collusion with the drug dealers. 警察腐败，与那伙毒品贩子内外勾结。

2 corrupt   

v.贿赂，收买；adj.腐败的，贪污的

参考例句：

• The newspaper alleged the mayor's corrupt practices.那家报纸断言市长有舞弊行为。
• This judge is corrupt.这个法官贪污。

3 virgin   

n.处女，未婚女子；adj.未经使用的；未经开发的

参考例句：

• Have you ever been to a virgin forest?你去过原始森林吗？
• There are vast expanses of virgin land in the remote regions.在边远地区有大片大片未开垦的土地。

4 collaborator   

n.合作者，协作者

参考例句：

• I need a collaborator to help me. 我需要个人跟我合作，帮我的忙。
• His collaborator, Hooke, was of a different opinion. 他的合作者霍克持有不同的看法。

5 corporate   

adj.共同的，全体的；公司的，企业的

参考例句：

• This is our corporate responsibility.这是我们共同的责任。
• His corporate's life will be as short as a rabbit's tail.他的公司的寿命是兔子尾巴长不了。

6 evasion   

n.逃避，偷漏(税)

参考例句：

• The movie star is in prison for tax evasion.那位影星因为逃税而坐牢。
• The act was passed as a safeguard against tax evasion.这项法案旨在防止逃税行为。

7 illicit   

adj.非法的，禁止的，不正当的

参考例句：

• He had an illicit association with Jane.他和简曾有过不正当关系。
• Seizures of illicit drugs have increased by 30% this year.今年违禁药品的扣押增长了30%。

8 misuse   

n.误用，滥用；vt.误用，滥用

参考例句：

• It disturbs me profoundly that you so misuse your talents.你如此滥用自己的才能，使我深感不安。
• He was sacked for computer misuse.他因滥用计算机而被解雇了。

9 actively   

adv.积极地，勤奋地

参考例句：

• During this period all the students were actively participating.在这节课中所有的学生都积极参加。
• We are actively intervening to settle a quarrel.我们正在积极调解争执。

10 erode   

v.侵蚀，腐蚀，使...减少、减弱或消失

参考例句：

• Once exposed,soil is quickly eroded by wind and rain.一旦暴露在外，土壤很快就会被风雨侵蚀。
• Competition in the financial marketplace has eroded profits.金融市场的竞争降低了利润。

11 eroded   

adj. 被侵蚀的，有蚀痕的 动词erode的过去式和过去分词形式

参考例句：

• The cliff face has been steadily eroded by the sea. 峭壁表面逐渐被海水侵蚀。
• The stream eroded a channel in the solid rock. 小溪在硬石中侵蚀成一条水道。

12 thoroughly   

adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地

参考例句：

• The soil must be thoroughly turned over before planting.一定要先把土地深翻一遍再下种。
• The soldiers have been thoroughly instructed in the care of their weapons.士兵们都系统地接受过保护武器的训练。

13 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

14 improper   

adj.不适当的，不合适的，不正确的，不合礼仪的

参考例句：

• Short trousers are improper at a dance.舞会上穿短裤不成体统。
• Laughing and joking are improper at a funeral.葬礼时大笑和开玩笑是不合适的。

15 offshore   

adj.海面的，吹向海面的；adv.向海面

参考例句：

• A big program of oil exploration has begun offshore.一个大规模的石油勘探计划正在近海展开。
• A gentle current carried them slowly offshore.和缓的潮流慢慢地把他们带离了海岸。

16 entities   

实体对像； 实体，独立存在体，实际存在物( entity的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Our newspaper and our printing business form separate corporate entities. 我们的报纸和印刷业形成相对独立的企业实体。
• The North American continent is made up of three great structural entities. 北美大陆是由三个构造单元组成的。

17 merger   

n.企业合并，并吞

参考例句：

• Acceptance of the offer is the first step to a merger.对这项提议的赞同是合并的第一步。
• Shareholders will be voting on the merger of the companies.股东们将投票表决公司合并问题。

18 jointly   

ad.联合地，共同地

参考例句：

• Tenants are jointly and severally liable for payment of the rent. 租金由承租人共同且分别承担。
• She owns the house jointly with her husband. 她和丈夫共同拥有这所房子。

19 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。