José Raúl Mulino took new actions to leave behind the image of Panama after the corruption cases from the “Panama Papers” became known
Text: RFI / AFP
Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino warned on Monday that companies from countries that have Panama on their tax haven lists will not be eligible for tenders in the Central American country.
Panama’s image was called into question after the “Panama Papers” scandal of 2016.
“The country that has us on the list has no right to anything from Panama, not even a vote in favor, not even contracts with the nation, and much less to important tenders. They will not be there, just like that,” said Mulino at a public event.
“We do not have the capacity to react like a foreign power, we are not one. But we do have dignity and we will apply it as appropriate, where appropriate,” he added.
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The Panama Papers scandal broke out after an international journalistic investigation revealed how thousands of opaque companies were created by a Panamanian law firm, some of which were used by celebrities from around the world to hide money.
These accusations have led to the country being placed on various blacklists, including one by the European Union.
Successive Panamanian governments have rejected the accusations.
In his inaugural address on July 1, Mulino said the Panama Papers were an “international hoax” designed to undermine the Panamanian financial system.
Since then, he has focused part of his foreign policy discourse on criticizing these lists, considering them to be “discriminatory” and “an aggression” against his country.
Following the scandal, the Central American nation implemented legal reforms, including penalizing tax evasion, which was not a crime before.
These changes allowed the country to leave the “grey list” of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), based in Paris, in 2023.
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