The internet does not only provide the channels and environments where people meet and communicate with each other. At the same time, we know that it offers a great opportunity for everything that remains hidden to be heard. For example, the WikiLeaks Documents, where almost everything we know about the Middle East today was leaked, the investments made by giant companies and state people in tax havens through off-shore companies.
In fact, if you look at it, we have become very used to the “leaking” of things since the early 2010s, when everyone, including people aged 70 and over in the most remote region, was included in the internet thanks to social media, and we are no longer surprised, we suspect that there is something we don’t know under everything we see. Now, the Pandora Documents have been revealed, which contains a total of 2.94 terabytes, or about 2940 GB, proving how right we are in this suspicion.
What is in the Pandora Documents and how were these documents accessed?
- 6.4 million documents, 2.9 million images, 1.2 million e-mails, 467 thousand excel spreadsheets and 886 thousand files in other formats.
- Among the working institutions is the International Commission of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ).
- The consortium is accompanied by a total of 150 media organizations such as The Guardian, BBC, DW, Washington Post, German Zeitung and Le Monde.
- Documents were compiled from 14 different sources, the study took a total of 2 years
- The total size of the files is 2.94 terabytes. The closest previous leak was the Panama Papers, with the size of 2.6 terabytes.
- The title of the documents comes from the phrase “Pandora’s box has been opened,” predictably.
Fergus Shiel of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, one of the institutions working on documents, explains that “There has never been such a big leak showing what is done to avoid taxes” and adds: “These are actions taken to enrich their own families at the expense of their own citizens. ”
Files of corruption, money laundering and tax evasion from world leaders swelled:
Image: The Guardian
- The list includes more than 130 world-renowned billionaires, artists, sports people.
- It is now known who bought the works of famous artists such as Picasso and Banksy with secret identities.
- Among the famous names on the list, there are some well-known celebrities such as Elton John, Shakira, Claudia Schiffer.
- Italy National Team Director Roberto Mancini is the most remarkable name from the world of sports to enter the document.
- In addition, football player Angel Di Maria and former Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola are also on the list.
- The lawyers of all these names explain that “no tax advantage was provided” about the documents.
- Famous and rich people in England establish a company to avoid taxes when buying a house,
- Around 95,000 off-shore companies were established just for this purpose.
- It was understood that Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and his family bought more than 400 million pounds of property in England in this way and did not pay any taxes.
- Also, one of these real estates of Aliyevs is Queen II. It turned out that he sold it to a company called Crown Estate, which is owned by Elizabeth and managed by the British Treasury, with a profit of 31 million pounds.
- It was revealed that King Abdullah of Jordan bought real estate worth £ 70 million in the USA and England on the same roads
- One of these properties is three £50m ocean view homes in Malibu, California.
- The relationship of people around Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta with a total of 11 companies was also detected. One of these companies is worth 30 million dollars.
- Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and his wife have also evaded a £6.45 million stamp duty on real estate purchases by the same means.
- Moreover, Tony Blair’s wife, Cherie Blair, uses one of these properties as the headquarters of the company she advises governments and the foundation she founded for women.
- Another interesting detail is the association of Russian President Vladimir Putin with assets kept secret in Monaco.
- Czech Republic Prime Minister Andrej Babis’ purchase of an investment company worth 12 million pounds in France, which he never announced, was revealed with these documents.
- The list includes the names of 1000 Japanese citizens who are high-ranking government officials and wealthy.
- According to DW Turkish, there are more than 220 names from Turkey in the documents.
- These names include well-established conglomerates, artists and people from the sports world.
- It is also stated in the documents that 25 primary schools, 8 hospitals, a dormitory with a capacity of 15 thousand students can be built, and a monthly salary of 115 thousand teachers can be paid, with only the tax of the money transferred off-shore by Ayşe Ilıcak, the contractor of the Presidential Palace and the founder of Rönesans Holding. was recorded.
Presidents of Ukraine and the Republic of Cyprus, President of Ecuador, Prime Minister of Pakistan are among those who were found to avoid tax through off-shore companies. The examination of 11.9 million documents continues.
- Sources: BBC Turkish, DW Turkish, icij. organ
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