It is a given that a certain level of trust, even if for limited purposes, must exist between INTERPOL and its member countries. When one of INTERPOL’s 195 member countries sends a request for a Red Notice to INTERPOL in hopes of obtaining Red Notices against wanted persons, the requests then become part of INTERPOL’s files.  

While INTERPOL decides whether or not to publish Red Notices, the organization does not own the data that it receives from member countries.

The information sent in by member countries belongs to the submitting member countries.  INTERPOL acts as a depository for that information and cannot modify it absent the member country’s request or consent.  Once INTERPOL circulates a person’s data as a Red Notice, diffusion, or other types of notice, it may update or remove the notice. Still, it cannot change the information that the member country provided originally. 

INTERPOL has strict rules regarding who may have access to its files and under what circumstances. Unless another member country submits a qualifying request for such access, it will not release the information. 

Thus, when Chinese authorities request a Red Notice, the request will not be changed unless China changes it. INTERPOL can choose not to issue the notice, or to later remove it, but another country can neither dictate the content of the data nor have a say in whether the data will be circulated. Red Notice subjects often seek assistance from their home countries when attempting to challenge a Red Notice, and such member country advocacy on behalf of citizens is quite rare.

As always, thoughts and comments are welcomed. 

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