Updated June 2021

What is the average Mexican’s biggest concern for their society?

If you ask an average American what Mexico's biggest problem is, you’ll likely hear narco-trafficking.  Ask the average Mexican living in Mexico what that country's biggest problem is (even here in my state of Sinaloa, home state to the Sinaloa cartel) and he'll likely tell you corruption. 

With many blogs under my belt about what I love about Mexico, it only seems fair to broach a negative aspect of Mexico now that I’ve lived here long enough to understand it beyond the bogus traffic ticket and subsequent bribe (mordidas) with which tourists are so familiar. Corruption in Mexico runs much deeper.

How vulnerable are you to corruption in Mexico as an expat?

As an expat, the extent to which you experience corruption will likely be nominal. That being said, you should live in an area awhile before engaging in any substantial commercial transaction. How long will depend on your ability to make trustworthy Mexican contacts.

Reputation is key in a country with fewer legal protections. You will need some time in an area to research the reputations of agents and brokers. Referrals from trusted locals are the best way to protect yourself. If starting a business, many expats who start businesses find Mexican partners, usually family members in Mexico, which tends to make hurdles easier to clear.

Instincts sharpen when you have spent some time in your Mexican town. With time, you’ll no longer misconstrue good English and a polo shirt as honesty. I’m not saying that without an extended period of time in Mexico you’ll be ripped off.  Thousands of expats buy homes in Mexico every year without a glitch practically as soon as they park their car. I’m only saying that the chances of being ripped off decrease when you have built local relationships and know your terrain.

A bigger problem for Mexicans

Mexicans have to deal with corruption a good bit more than any retired foreigner. Unlike drug violence, corruption affects every single Mexican at some time in their lives. In the spirit of understanding a distinct difference between Mexican culture and our own when considering life in Mexico, it’s worth taking a look at the subject to better understand The Mexican Experience of Corruption.

Corruption is at every level.

When you hear talk of “corruption at every level” in Mexico you might think that means every level of government, local and national, particularly the police. That’s incorrect. Corruption is common at every level of the society and ingrained in the culture itself.  

Traveling in Mexico, you will now see "Anti-corruption" signs and even television campaigns educating Mexicans that they cannot have it both ways - they can’t expect ethical behavior from government and other officials that they don’t practice themselves.

This message will take a long time to sink in, if it ever does. It’s similar to how many Americans feel about entitlements in the U.S. Americans hate all entitlements except the ones they receive. Everyone in Mexico hates corruption until a situation comes up that a little of it will benefit them - such as a bribe to get a child into a certain private or graduate school, or offering pay off after having committed an honest mistake but are still being charged for it.

Recognition is growing among younger Mexicans that corruption in Mexico embodies a circular relationship between the government authorities who practice corruption and the everyday corruption practiced and justified by Mexicans themselves. One Mexican study aptly defined the problem as being on three levels, the  “corrupción de ellos” (Their corruption), the “corrupción de nosotros” (our corruption) and “corrupción de todos.” (everyone’s corruption).

La corrupción de ellos (The corruption of others, “their” corruption)

When Mexicans talk about corruption, they’re almost always talking about the abuse of power for personal gain by the government and authorities. Other types of corruption is less spoken about yet very much exists.

The (roughly translated as always) National Survey of the Quality of Government Services (The Encuesta Nacional de Calidad e Impacto Gubernamental or ENCIG) estimates that 30,097 incidents of corruption occur for each 100,000 citizens, with the largest percentage (55.2%) springing from contacts with public safety authorities like the police. The remaining incidents were equally distributed percentage-wise among dealings with public prosecutors, authorities involved with opening a business and appearing before judges in labor disputes.

To put what that means in a more human perspective, I’ll use a sad example. Sad because corruption often impedes the efforts of citizens in Mexico who would seek to improve their communities.

In this story, an honest, capable doctor with a good following of supporters wants to build a medical clinic to serve the poor. There are ordinances and permits that must be secured first. He goes to the designated government official and presents his case. The official is very impressed with his plan and says "Yes. I will help you build your clinic.” The official instructs him how to submit the necessary paperwork.

With the doctor’s good name and reputation behind the project, the official tells him the government is likely to support it. They work together. The proposals are prepared and money is granted. After which the government official pockets the money (How this part gets orchestrated is beyond me) and goes on his way. The doctor’s reputation is destroyed, and it’s just another day in Mexico.

Many a time a private citizen has sought to improve their neighborhood, only to be thwarted by corruption or neighbors suspicious of their intentions.

From time to time, a groundswell of public outcry over an obvious delito occurs. One year in Mazatlán after not seeing new streetlights promised from a much-publicized federal grant, citizen outrage did the trick. Most of the time however, the press isn’t much help. They are frequently either bought off directly or consider the omission from the local press as a chit to be collected from the official upon at a later date.

The president of Mexico himself has confessed that "not a single sector of Mexican society is free of corruption"

La corrupción de nosotros (our corruption)

From a sociological standpoint, everyday corruption committed by private individuals is justified as leveling the playing field, a “weapon of the poor.” Here Mexicans blur the distinction between what is corrupt and what is simply ingenious, as reflected in the phrase “el que no transa, no avanza,”  (He who can’t make a deal doesn’t get ahead.” ). Corruption is seen by many Mexicans as a justifiable response to social injustice, a socially acceptable way of redistributing wealth in the context of extreme economic inequality.

According to surveys by Mexico’s own government agencies, street-level corruption is at an incredible level. In surveys, people openly confessed to tilting market scales (86%), pretending to have a disability to receive charitable assistance (85%), selling cars without admitting its defects (83%), and using a neighbor’s internet or phone line (73%). In one survey 27% admitted to paying a bribe in the course of a year.

The same people surveyed, when asked, said they considered themselves honest. According to the survey, they are tolerant of this type of behavior in private citizens even though they recognize it’s not quite right. Studies indicate that most Mexicans only consider such practices corrupt if committed by authorities and public servants.  

Only 28% of those surveyed considered these behaviors as a societal problem. Rather most consider it a form of social justice. The ethical limbo and circular nature of corruption in Mexico is well illustrated by this type of response in the survey.

“Le he pagado a policías para que me dejen ir, pero, en mi defensa, me detuvieron sin causa”, explicó. (translated: I paid the bribe to the police to let me go. In my defense, they stopped me without cause,” he explained.)

Of course the point isn’t whether he was speeding or not. The point is that I, as an American, wouldn’t even know how to offer a bribe appropriately (I’m sure there’s a technique involved). In the US it’s not a common practice. The fact that all Mexicans know how to offer a bribe is part of the problem.

Without a doubt, government corruption has a much greater impact on Mexicans’ lives than individual acts of corruption between citizens. Thirty-four percent of Mexicans think that the government has principal responsibility to combat corruption, 28% believe that society has to change, and 21% believe that society and institutions need to work together.

Like the US did with anti-pollution and drunk driving campaigns, the Mexican governments recognizes that the first tiny step to reform is public education. To that end they have started with a simple definition of what corruption is:  “The abuse of a position of power, be it public or private, to obtain a benefit at the cost of the collective good.”

Public educational campaigns are beginning to pay off. There is a growing public recognition of the social impact the abuse of power, whether by the police, academic bribery, or bribery to speed up bureaucratic processes and commercial piracy. Surveys show younger Mexicans have a growing self-awareness of the relationship between their personal ethics and societal ethics.

La corrupción de todos (Everyone’s corruption)

“La corrupción de todos” is a collective shrugging of shoulders, that the problem of corruption in Mexico is inevitable and unsolvable, the by-product of thousands of years of Mexican history that cannot be remediated.

Day-to-day, it’s easier for most people to go along with it the same way you might accept the practice of tipping, especially when it comes to simple “tramites” government transactions such as permits; car plates, immigration and import permits. Money talks and favor-exchanging is abundant.

“Let the first person who has not participated in corruption throw the first stone,” said one Mexican researcher, “We are all corrupt.”

Related: 

Getting your meds in Mexico, hilarious and frustrating at once.

About the author:

Kerry Baker is author of three books. Her second book, "If Only I Had a Place," gives you the inside track to renting long-term in Mexico. Realtors would have you believe it's just the same as in the U.S. Mexican landlords will tell you things like pre-paying several months rent in advance is the norm. Neither are correct. More than how-to-rent, this book provides the philosophy that will help you get the most luxurious places for less, year after year. 

The Mexico Solution: Saving your money, sanity, and quality of life through part-time life in Mexico” is her second book. This is a how-t0 manual on how to set up a life in Mexico that, unlike the others, will not leave you numb. Her most recent book is a cookbook for travelers, expats, and snowbirds, “The Lazy Expat: Healthy Recipes That Translate in Mexico.” To maintain a healthy diet in Mexico, you must cook, a challenge in a foreign culture. This cookbook shows you how.