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PP RUEHCD RUEHGD RUEHHO RUEHMC RUEHNG RUEHNL RUEHRD RUEHRS RUEHTM
DE RUEHME #0398/01 0431723
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 121723Z FEB 09
FM AMEMBASSY MEXICO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 5088
INFO RUEHXC/ALL US CONSULATES IN MEXICO COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA PRIORITY 1062
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RHMFIUU/DEPT OF HOMELAND SECURITY WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RHMFIUU/DEPT OF JUSTICE WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RHEHAAA/NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 MEXICO 000398 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EEB/IPE STEPHEN KEAT 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KIPR ECON CONS CVIS
SUBJECT: The Power of the Line: How the NIV Section Helps Protect 
IPR in Mexico 
 
¶1.  (U) Summary:  Mexico's federal enforcement agencies continue to 
make improvements in intellectual property rights (IPR) protection 
and enforcement; however, IPR violations - including piracy, 
smuggling, and triangulation - occur with alarming regularity in 
Mexico. Some of these illicit activities are unwittingly facilitated 
by consular officers who issue visas to the violators. By 
understanding the scope of the problem, the U.S. interest in 
upholding regulations, and the power of existing law, nonimmigrant 
visa sections can be a powerful ally in the fight to protect IPR in 
Mexico. 
 
BACKGROUND 
¶2.  IPR protection and enforcement is an issue of significant 
concern in Mexico, both because of the enormous volume of trade that 
takes place between the United States and Mexico as well as the 
proven ties between counterfeit and pirated goods and 
narco-traffickers and organized crime operating in Mexico. Because 
of the proximity of the U.S. to Mexico and the existing trade links 
between the U.S. and China, IPR violators commonly transit the U.S. 
with their illegal purchases. 
¶3. Over a billion dollars a day in trade crosses the U.S/Mexico 
border, much of it legal and beneficial to both economies. However, 
an inestimable amount of cross-border goods makes its way to 
Mexico's black and gray markets. From unregulated vendors selling 
pirated DVDs for fifty cents each, to small vendors selling 
clothing, shoes, or perfumes purchased in the U.S. and brought into 
Mexico with false certificates of origin, to highly organized 
smugglers offering everything from stolen electronics to automatic 
weapons, the black market is an integral part of the Mexican economy 
and depends heavily on the U.S. to function. 
Stories from the Visa Line 
¶4. A successful trafficker requires a United States visa to transit, 
for example, through a U.S. airport on a buying trip to China or 
Taiwan, or to shop at the outlet malls in McAllen, TX.  The stories 
below are examples of actual cases that consular officers have seen 
on the visa line and the types of cases new officers are trained to 
watch for. 
Chinese Visas 
¶5. A pattern of extensive international travel is usually a good 
sign in a visa interview, however consular officers in Embassy 
Mexico City nonimmigrant visa unit began to realize that in some 
cases consistent travel to China and/or Taiwan may indicate that the 
applicant is in fact a trafficker of smuggled goods. In one case an 
officer noticed that an applicant renewing his U.S. tourist visa had 
seven Chinese visas in his Mexican passport. The applicant told the 
interviewing officers that over the last three years he had traveled 
to China and Taiwan at least 50 times. When the officer asked the 
applicant why he made so many trips he showed the officer his fake 
"Gucci" wallet and "Rolex" watch, and said that he sold such items 
in his store in Tepito, a notorious  black market area in Mexico 
City.  The applicant used his U.S. visa both to travel back and 
forth from China, and to pick up goods once they had arrived in Los 
Angeles. Similar tales have been told by other visa applicants 
stating that they applied for U.S. visas make travel to China easier 
and cheaper and to allow them to purchase goods in black markets in 
Los Angeles. 
Triangulation 
¶6. A common occupation listed for applicants in Mexico is "clothing 
sales" or "business owner." These are often legitimate vocations, 
but not infrequently a brief interview and a close examination of 
the applicant's passport and the NIV database will reveal more 
worrying activity. A common scenario would be as follows:  An 
applicant works in an area flea market.  She claims that she wishes 
to go across the border to buy new products in discounts stores with 
the goal of re-selling them in the flea market.  When asked about 
payment of taxes, the applicant states that she pays approximately 
USD 15 in taxes at the border for the USD 500 worth of goods she 
purchased for resale.  This scenario illustrates an illegal activity 
referred to as triangulation - the intentional obfuscation of the 
origin of a good in order to circumvent the costly tariff imposed by 
Mexican authorities on goods from the country of origin but not on 
NAFTA partners. Triangulation undermines U.S. Trade agreements by 
negating the advantage that American producers should have in 
Mexican markets. It is also illegal in the United States 
Crime Begets Crime 
 
¶7. Cases similar to the one described above, though on a larger 
scale also illustrate the link between trafficking in illegal goods 
and other illegal activity.  In one such case, a married couple who 
frequently traveled to Los Angeles to buy significant quantities of 
discount clothing for resale in Mexico were issued visas based on 
their high solvency and regular travel. A few months after their 
visas were issued, posts' Fraud Prevention Unit (FPU) cancelled the 
 
MEXICO 00000398  002 OF 002 
 
 
visas when the husband was arrested for involvement with "Los Zetas" 
- a  notorious criminal organization associated with drug cartels in 
Mexico. This case and others like it demonstrate that the 
willingness to participate in one illegal activity can indicate a 
proclivity for other illegal behavior. 
 
Taking Action 
 
¶8. In the cases described above Consuls issued visas to the 
applicants because there was no obvious "immigrant intent"; the crux 
of Section 214(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act and the 
foundation on which consular officers adjudicate nonimmigrant visas. 
 These applicants use their visas to travel to or through the United 
States and then return to their businesses in Mexico.  At first 
blush, they appear to be easy renewals.  Some of these applicants, 
however, are using their visas to contravene U.S. law and as such 
violate Section 214(b), which prohibits issuing visas whose purpose 
of travel is unlawful. 
 
¶9. Working in conjunction with the economic section and Immigration 
and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Investigative arm of IPR issues 
for DHS,  consular officers presented a DVC to entry-level officers 
in consular sections throughout Mission Mexico, explaining the 
importance of IPR protection and enforcement, describing indicators 
that may suggest IPR violations, and reminding officers that per 9 
FAM 41:31 N 4.1, visas should be refused if the officer has reason 
to believe or know that the applicant will use it to engage in 
unlawful activities, thus empowering consular officers to stop IPR 
violations when recognized at the visa window.  This training and 
the attention it focused on the seriousness of IPR issues to the USG 
quickly changed how consular officers responded to these cases on 
NIV lines across Mission Mexico.  Telltale warning signs are now 
investigated more carefully to determine if possible illegal 
activity is occurring.  If it is, then the cases are refused.  This 
additional training and management support for this new scrutiny has 
allowed  consular officers to help proactively in achieving USG 
policy objectives and has assisted ECON and DHS in their efforts to 
present a united Mission-wide front in assisting the government of 
Mexico in the ongoing battle against IPR violations. (U) 
BASSETT