Topic: Net Neutrality
Country: Mexico
Delegate Name: Hunter Harloff
School: Mattawan High School
Topic page: background guide and all position papers All Mexico position papers GLIMUN 2016 committees
Approximately 50% of Mexico’s citizens utilize the internet, and growth is surging at the current time. That said, Mexico does not have infrastructure as strong as most developed nations; accordingly, our network speeds and data processing capabilities are subpar in comparison. Crime, mainly pertaining to drug trade, is prevalent in modern day Mexico, and the internet propagates these crimes by enabling communication for dangerous criminal kingpins. Nonetheless, Mexico possesses a deeply rooted respect for its citizens and the liberties they possess, and as such, Mexico strongly believes that net neutrality is something that must be upheld and protected.
In the past, Mexico has passed legislation upholding this viewpoint. Specifically, the recently composed Federal Telecommunications and Broadcasting law declares access to the internet as a human right and establishes a strict net neutral standpoint to ensure this right. Among Latin America, this stance on net neutrality is unprecedented and undoubtedly serves as a step in the right direction. Citizens deserve the right to browse the internet without fear of governmental interference or corporate abuse.
In resolving this issue, Mexico holds firm that any solution involving the removal of a citizen's access, or ease of access thereof, is a step in the wrong direction. Such implications are mostly derived from the removal of net-neutrality on a corporate basis; as a result, Mexico is strongly opposed to any suggestion that ISPs are granted the right to filter connection based on what should have been net-neutral data. Censorship is not the way forward in a modernizing world and restricting net neutrality propagates maleficent governments that have held back humanity for millennia.
Instead, Mexico believes the correct way to address this issue is to promote a neutral online space where governmental and corporate censorship is at a minimum and free speech reigns supreme. To accomplish this, we must follow Mexico’s president and focus on establishing the internet as a fundamental human right.
