Responses to Information Requests

Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada

1. Overview

A 2017 report on access to information in Latin America, published by UNESCO and its Regional Bureau for Sciences in Latin America and the Caribbean, notes that Infomex was created following the adoption of Mexico's Transparency and Access to Public Information Act in 2002 (UN 2017, 18). The same source describes Infomex as "a web-based digital system for citizens to seek information from government and direct specific requests to relevant offices and agencies at all levels of government: federal, state and local" (UN 2017, 18). In correspondence with the Research Directorate, an associate professor of political science and public policy at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), who has written on access to information in Mexico, indicated that Infomex is not limited to Mexican citizens and that "[a]nyone, anywhere, can file a request via Infomex (and indeed many are filed from outside of Mexico)" (Associate Professor 8 Jan. 2021). A May 2016 post by Advox [1] notes that "all people with Internet access (regardless of their place of residence or their citizenship) could request information free of charge from federal agencies" through Infomex, but that it has been replaced by Mexico's National Transparency Platform portal, which similarly "allows anyone with Internet access to obtain government information already available, or request data that is not yet available" (Advox 19 May 2016). However, the name "Infomex" currently appears on the websites of some government bodies, such Mexico City (Mexico City n.d.) and the state of Jalisco (Jalisco n.d.).

The UNESCO report notes that, following a 2007 constitutional reform, "public disclosure of official information" is now required of "governments at every level in Mexico's federal system – national, state, and municipal" (UN 2017, 19). A former commissioner of Mexico's Federal Access to Information Institute (Instituto Federal de Acceso a la Información, IFAI), the precursor to the National Institute for Transparency, Access to Information and Personal Data Protection (Instituto Nacional de Transparencia, Acceso a la Información y Protección de Datos Personales, INAI), is quoted in the same report as saying that amendments made to Mexico's legislation on transparency and access to public information in 2015 created "'norms for governments at all levels to provide information and systems for access to information'" (UN 2017, 19). A document of frequently asked questions (FAQ) about Infomex by INAI indicates that the Infomex system is intended to handle requests for information for all institutions of the federal executive branch (Mexico n.d.a). The same source gives 1 December 2008 as the Infomex launch date (Mexico n.d.a). An Infomex user's guide indicates that Infomex replaces and improves upon the previous access to information system, SISI (Sistema de solicitudes de información), which had been in operation since 2003 (Mexico n.d.b, 3). The INAI FAQ document indicates that the Infomex platform can also be used to request information from some states in Mexico (Mexico n.d.a). The website of the National Transparency Platform similarly indicates that it is the means through which information can be requested from Mexico's public institutions (Mexico n.d.c); for requesting information, it offers a drop-down list including 33 options: Mexico's 31 states, Mexico City, and the federal government (Mexico n.d.d).

In correspondence with the Research Directorate, the LSE Associate Professor and an assistant professor of political science at McGill University, who has also written on access to information in Mexico, noted in a joint response that

[u]nder Mexico's access-to-information law, nearly any information, records, or documents held by government entities in Mexico can be requested via the Infomex platform, subject to standard legal exemptions such as confidentiality, personal privacy, commercial secrets, or national security. Under a separate legal regime, requests for personal data can also be requested via Infomex. Requests for government information can pertain to specific records, documents, or data of which the requester is already aware; or can take the form of more open-ended questions. (Associate Professor and Assistant Professor 17 Dec. 2020)

INAI's website indicates that information can be requested from any authority, entity, or body of the executive, legislative, and judicial branches as well as independent bodies, political parties, trusts and public funds, and any individual, legal entity, or union that receives public resources or performs [translation] "acts of authority" at the federal, state, or municipal level (Mexico n.d.e). The same source notes that a request for access to information can be submitted for any of the entity's activities or for the performance, [translation] "where relevant," of public servants (Mexico n.d.e). According to INAI's website, any individual can submit a request for access to public information on their own behalf or through their legal representative (Mexico n.d.e). The same source indicates that responses to information requests must be sent to requestors within 20 days but that, under exceptional circumstances, this time may be extended for up to 10 additional days (Mexico n.d.e). INAI's website indicates that, if a response has not been provided, INAI may intervene if the requestor files an appeal for review (Mexico n.d.e). The same source notes that requests for access to public information can be submitted in person at the Transparency Unit (Unidad de Transparencia) of the [translation] "obligated party," online through the Infomex platform, or by email, mail, courier, telegraph, or verbally through the Transparency Unit of the party whose information is being requested (Mexico n.d.e).

INAI's website indicates that the following are required to submit a request for access to information:

• Requestor's name or, where appropriate, general information about their representative (optional)
• Requestor's address or means to receive notifications
• Description of the requested information
• Any other information that facilitates the search (optional)
• Requestor's preferred way to access to the information (verbally; through direct consultation; or through copies, whether certified, uncertified, electronic, etc.) (Mexico n.d.e).

Mexico's General Act of Transparency and Access to Public Information [Ley General de Transparencia y Acceso a la Información Pública] [2] provides the following on the procedures for accessing public information:

Article 121. Transparency Units of the regulated entities shall ensure the measures and accessibility so that every person may enforce the right of access to information through information requests, and shall assist the applicant in the preparation thereof, in accordance with the bases established in this Title.

Article 122. Any person by himself or through his representative may request access to information with the Transparency Unit, through the National Platform, at the office or offices designated for this purpose, via email, mail, courier, telegraph, verbally or by any means approved by the National System.

Article 123. In the case of requests for access to information formulated through the National Platform, a folio number will be automatically assigned, with which applicants can track their requirements. In other cases, the Transparency Unit will have to record and enter the access request in the National Platform and must send the acknowledgment of receipt to the applicant, indicating the date of receipt, the corresponding folio and applicable response times.

Article 124. In order to submit a request, no other requirements may be required than:

1. Name or, if necessary, general data of his/her representative;
2. Address or means for receiving notifications;
3. The description of the requested information;
4. Any other information that facilitates its search and eventual location, and
5. The preferred mode to be granted the access to information, which may be verbal, provided it is for guidance purposes, by direct consultation, by issuing simple or certified copies or the reproduction through any other means, including electronic.

Where appropriate, the applicant shall state the accessible format or the indigenous language in which the information is required according to what is stated in this Act.

The information in sections I and IV will be provided by the applicant as an option and, in no case, may be a mandatory prerequisite for the admissibility of the application.

…

Article 132. The response to the request shall be notified to the person concerned in the shortest possible time, not exceeding twenty days, counting from the day following the submission of the request.

Exceptionally, the term referred to in the previous paragraph may be extended for ten more days, provided there are reasonable grounds, which must be approved by the Transparency Committee, by issuing a decision to be notified to the applicant before its expiration. (Mexico 2015)

2. Reliability of Information

Information on the reliability of the information obtained through the Infomex platform was scarce among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

The Associate and Assistant Professors stated that "[i]nformation provided in response to requests made through the Infomex platform, if indeed relevant, is generally highly reliable" (Associate Professor and Assistant Professor 17 Dec. 2020). The same source noted that

[t]here are absolutely problems (which our research has identified) of government officials in some cases being unresponsive, delaying their responses, applying legal exemptions in situations where they do not apply, or providing information that was not sufficiently relevant to the request's query. … However, in situations where these problems have not occurred, and relevant information is indeed provided, then there is no general reason to expect that such information would not be reliable. Indeed, information requests are frequently responded to with scanned original documents. (Associate Professor and Assistant Professor 17 Dec. 2020, emphasis in original)

The same sources further stated the following: "[w]e know of no instances where documents or information have actually been doctored or manipulated, as opposed to instances where disclosure is avoided or delayed" (Associate Professor and Assistant Professor 17 Dec. 2020). They also indicated that

the majority of government officials working in ministries' or agencies' transparency liaison units are highly trained professionals with ... frequent interaction with Mexico's independent information commission … As such, information that has been successfully obtained through Infomex should be considered highly reliable. (Associate Professor and Assistant Professor 17 Dec. 2020)

Corroborating information could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

Notes

[1] Advox is a project of Global Voices (Advox 9 Sept. 2019), "an international, multilingual, primarily volunteer community of writers, translators, academics, and human rights activists" that uses the internet to report, translate, and advocate for free speech online (Global Voices n.d.).

[2] This English translation of the General Act of Transparency and Access to Public Information [Ley General de Transparencia y Acceso a la Información Pública] was provided on the website of the Right to Information Rating (RTI Rating), which provides information for "RTI advocates, reformers, legislators and others" to assess the "overall strength of a legal framework for RTI" (RTI Rating n.d.). The program was founded by Access Info Europe (AIE), a "human rights organisation dedicated to promoting and protecting the right of access to information in Europe" and the Centre for Law and Democracy (CLD), a "non-profit organisation based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada [that] works to promote, protect and develop" rights, including the right to information (RTI Rating n.d.).

References

Advox. 9 September 2019. "About Advox." [Accessed 8 Jan. 2021]

Advox. 19 May 2016. J. Tadeo. "Mexico Launches National Transparency Platform." Translated by Teodora C. Hasegan. [Accessed 8 Jan. 2021]

Associate Professor, London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). 8 January 2021. Correspondence with the Research Directorate.

Associate Professor, London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), and Assistant Professor, McGill University. 17 December 2020. Correspondence with the Research Directorate.

Global Voices. N.d. "What Is Global Voices?" [Accessed 8 Jan. 2021]

Jalisco. N.d. Instituto de Transparencia, Información Pública y Protección de Datos Personales del Estado de Jalisco (ITEI), Sistema de Solicitudes de Información del Estado de Jalisco. "Inicio." [Accessed 11 Jan. 2021]

Mexico. 2015. General Act of Transparency and Access to Public Information. [Accessed 18 Dec. 2020]

Mexico. N.d.a. Instituto Nacional de Transparencia, Acceso a la Información y Protección de Datos Personales (INAI). Respuesta a preguntas frecuentes. [Accessed 9 Dec. 2020]

Mexico. N.d.b. Instituto Nacional de Transparencia, Acceso a la Información y Protección de Datos Personales (INAI). Sistema Infomex – Gobierno federal: Manual de uso del Sistema. [Accessed 9 Dec. 2020]

Mexico. N.d.c. Instituto Nacional de Transparencia, Acceso a la Información y Protección de Datos Personales (INAI), Plataforma Nacional de Transparencia. "Tutoriales." [Accessed 11 Jan. 2021]

Mexico. N.d.d. Instituto Nacional de Transparencia, Acceso a la Información y Protección de Datos Personales (INAI), Plataforma Nacional de Transparencia. "Información pública." [Accessed 11 Jan. 2021]

Mexico. N.d.e. Instituto Nacional de Transparencia, Acceso a la Información y Protección de Datos Personales (INAI). "Proceso para ejercer el derecho de acceso a la información." [Accessed 16 Dec. 2020]

Mexico City. N.d. Instituto de Transparencia, Acceso a la Información Pública, Protección de Datos Personales y Rendición de Cuentas de la Ciudad de México. "Cómo puedo solicitarla?" [Accessed 11 Jan. 2021]

Right to Information Rating (RTI Rating). N.d. Homepage. [Accessed 30 Dec. 2020]

United Nations (UN). 2017. UN Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), Regional Bureau for Science in Latin America and the Caribbean. Access to Information: Lessons from Latin America. By Bill Orme. [Accessed 7 Dec. 2020]

Additional Sources Consulted

Oral sources: Fundar, Centro de Análisis e Investigación; Mexico – Infomex; professor at an American university who studies digital government; professor at an American university who has written on Mexico's access to information system; Transparencia Mexicana.

Internet sites, including: Access Info Europe; Australia – Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade; BBC; Bertelsmann Stiftung; Centre for Public Impact; Centro de Investigación y Docencia Económicas; ecoi.net; Factiva; freedominfo.org; Fundar, Centro de Análisis e Investigación; Inter-American Development Bank; InterPARES Trust; Mexico – Platforma Nacional de Transparencia; Mexico News Daily; Open Society Foundations; Organization of American States; Transparency International; UN – Refworld; US – US Agency for International Development; Washington Office on Latin America; The Washington Post; Wilson Center; World Bank.