Eleven years after the signing of the Peace Accords that brought a formal end to 36 years of brutal civil war, Guatemala remains a fragile democracy. Similar to other Central American countries, it has seen a rise in violent crime, the growing threat of youth gangs (pandillas or maras) and inter­national and well-organized drug trafficking and money laundering. The current homicide rate is higher than during the civil war. Security has become a primary concern for both the population and the political elite. In turn, rising insecurity is encouraging repressive measures with a recourse to autocratic habits and army involvement in what should be domestic police responsibility. These trends threaten basic democratic principles and institutions, including human rights and public confidence in the state and its institutions. Confronted by all these challenges, the ability of the Guatemalan state to formulate and implement policies remains weak. Security problems constitute the main threat to democratic governance and reflect the unfinished security sector reform processes spelled out in the Peace Agreements.

There are no immediate or short term solutions to the security problems facing the country. Rather, the only safe way forward is to continue to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the security and justice systems while respecting the rule of law and human rights. The Interpeace programme in Guatemala is working precisely towards this goal.

Interpeace has been working in Guatemala since 1997 to support the peace process and the consolidation of democracy in the country. In 2000, the programme  began to concentrate efforts on security and defense issues, and promoting civil society participation in the process of Security Sector Reform.