Kim Hjelmgaard

USA TODAY

Whistleblowing group WikiLeaks criticized the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists' decision not to allow open access to documents that show how wealthy people have links to offshore financial services.

"If you censor more than 99% of the documents you are engaged in 1% journalism by definition," WikiLeaks said in a tweet Wednesday.

The ICIJ and its media partners have chosen not to release hacked Panama law firm Mossack Fonseca's files online.

Panama vows action to boost financial transparency

When Wikileaks leaked classified diplomatic cables in 2010 that contained sensitive and embarrassing information and analysis about countries and world leaders it published the entire database on the Internet in a searchable format.

The group wants ICIJ to take a similar approach to its data.

"(The documents) should be available to the general public in such a manner so everybody, not just the group of journalists working on the data, can search it, "WikiLeaks spokesperson Kristinn Hrafnsson told Russian broadcaster RT.

Rieder: How Panama Papers came together

Sueddeutsche Zeitung, the German newspaper that first shared the leaked files with the ICIJ, said Thursday the full dossier of 11.5 million documents would not be made available to the public or law enforcement agencies because it contains private information about companies and individuals that have no public interest.

Separately, Gerard Ryle, ICIJ's director, told Wired magazine: "We're not WikiLeaks. We're trying to show that journalism can be done responsibly."

First banking CEO's head claimed by Panama Papers

American executives' names surface in Panama Papers