(VOVworld) – The Panamanian government is stepping up a PR blitz to dissociate Panama from the expanding “Panama Papers” scandal, a week after the first revelations of the largest ever money laundering and tax evasion scandal. President Juan Carlos Varela wrote an op-ed for the New York Times newspaper lamenting that "Panama does not deserve to be singled out on an issue that plagues many countries." He highlighted recent financial transparency reforms by his administration and the creation of a commission to propose more efficient tax management. Panama is working to fall in line with international standards on sharing tax information, the President stressed.

President Juan Carlos Varela (Photo: AFP)

The Panama Papers are a leak of 11.5 million files from the database of the Mossack Fonseca law firm, which helps the world’s rich hide their money. The Panamanian government is worried that the leak may hold back Panama’s concerted efforts to delete itself from the blacklist of tax havens.