{"id":3140,"date":"2016-04-10T07:56:47","date_gmt":"2016-04-10T07:56:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.internationaldiplomat.com\/?p=3140"},"modified":"2016-04-10T07:56:47","modified_gmt":"2016-04-10T07:56:47","slug":"panama","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/12h71.com\/?p=3140","title":{"rendered":"Panama papers: UN rights expert calls for the end of financial secrecy to halt flow of illicit funds"},"content":{"rendered":"

GENEVA (8 April 2016) \u2013 The United Nations Independent Expert on foreign debt and human rights, Juan Pablo Bohoslavsky, today called on the international community to urgently put an end to financial secrecy. He warned that tax evasion and the flow of funds of illicit origin undermine justice and deprive Governments of resources needed for the realization of economic, social and cultural rights.<\/span>
\nThe expert\u2019s call comes as leaked documents have shown how corporations, wealthy individuals and politically exposed persons have systematically hidden assets in more than 21 offshore jurisdictions. <\/span>
\n\u201cThe clients may have had different motives for depositing their assets into more than 210,000 secret shell companies. But tax evasion, hiding corruption and criminal funds appear to be a prominent reason,\u201d said Mr. Bohoslavsky, author of a recent study* on illicit financial flows presented to the UN Human Rights Council.<\/span>
\nThe expert noted that shell companies have also been used in the past by groups and individuals busting sanctions, trafficking drugs, engaging in illicit arms trade, terrorism as well as by authoritarian rulers responsible for severe violations of human rights.<\/span>
\n\u201cTax evasion destroys trust in public institutions and the rule of law, and shrinks the fiscal space for investing in public health care, education, social security and other public goods and services,\u201d the Independent Expert said. \u201cPublic funds that are essential to guarantee economic, social and cultural rights to all are robbed from the people.\u201d<\/span>
\nThe leaked documentation shows that many banks and financial intermediaries have failed to exercise due diligence with their clients. Some of them may actually have aided and abetted tax evasion, corruption and other criminal activities. According to the \u2018Panama Papers\u2019 more than 14,000 banks, law firms, company incorporators or other middlemen have set up companies, foundations and trusts for customers. <\/span>
\nMr. Bohoslavsky recalled that the UN Human Rights Council recognized that flows of funds of illicit origin deprive many States of resources required to progressively realize human rights. In a resolution adopted last month, the Council stressed the need for transparency and effective due diligence procedures of financial intermediaries.<\/span>
\nReducing substantially by 2030 illicit financial flows is an agreed target of the new UN Sustainable Development Goals. Curbing such flows was also agreed to at the Third International Conference on Financing for Development held in July 2015 in Addis Ababa. <\/span>
\n\u201cStates need now to take action to honour these commitments,\u201d the expert said. \u201cThe \u2018Panama Papers\u2019 underscore the need to make public disclosure of beneficial ownership information legally binding in all countries. States must put an end to such harmful banking secrecy, for which there is no meaningful justification.\u201d <\/span>
\n\u201cWe need to move to a global system of automatic exchange of tax information which ensures that developing countries can benefit from it on an equal footing,\u201d he stated. \u201cFinancial institutions and intermediaries facilitating tax evasion, corruption or other criminal activities must be also held to account.\u201d <\/span>
\nAccording to estimates by the Washington based think tank Global Financial Integrity, illicit financial outflows \u00a0from developing and emerging economies related to \u00a0tax evasion, crime, corruption and other illicit activities amounted to 1.1 trillion USD \u00a0in 2013. This is a significant drain of resources which increased during the last decade on an average rate of 6.5 per cent per year.<\/span>
\n(*) <\/b>Read the Independent Expert\u2019s report on illicit financial flows and human rights, available in all UN languages: <\/span>http:\/\/ap.ohchr.org\/documents\/dpage_e.aspx?si=A\/HRC\/31\/61<\/span><\/span><\/a>
\n<\/span>
\nENDS<\/span>
\nJuan Pablo Bohoslavsky<\/i><\/b> (Argentina) was appointed as Independent Expert on the effects of foreign debt and human rights by the United Nations Human Rights Council on 8 May 2014. \u00a0Before, he worked as a Sovereign Debt Expert for the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) where he coordinated an Expert Group on Responsible Sovereign Lending and Borrowing. His mandate covers all countries and has most recently been renewed by Human Rights Council resolution 25\/16.<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

GENEVA (8 April 2016) \u2013 The United Nations Independent Expert on foreign debt and human rights, Juan Pablo Bohoslavsky, today called on the international community to urgently put an end to financial secrecy. He warned that tax evasion and the flow of funds of illicit origin undermine justice and deprive Governments of resources needed for
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