Counternarcotics and Law Enforcement Country Program: Guatemala

Challenges

Guatemala is a major transit country for illegal narcotics, primarily cocaine, traveling from South America to Mexico and onward to the United States via air, road, and maritime routes. In the late 1980’s and early 1990’s Guatemala was considered an opium poppy source country, but a combination of aerial and manual eradication operations from 1990-1996 effectively eliminated the poppy crop. In 2004 however, Guatemala eradicated over 5.4 million poppy plants, or 181 hectares. Poppy cultivation is once again a problem. The United States continues to focus its bilateral cooperation efforts with the Government of Guatemala on narcotics-related threats in Guatemala: cocaine transshipment, corruption of government officials, diversion of precursor chemicals, money laundering, growing domestic drug abuse, and control of opium poppy and marijuana cultivation.

U.S. Counternarcotics Goals

• Strengthen criminal justice institutions to respond more effectively to the threat of drug-trafficking, organized crime, and official corruption;
  
  
• Enhance the capability of Guatemalan law enforcement to investigate and prosecute criminals, seize and forfeit assets, interdict drug and chemical shipments, and control money laundering; and
  
  
• Support the Government of Guatemala’s eradication programs to discourage opium poppy and marijuana production and reduce local consumption.

U.S. Programs

The Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) supports five anti-drug programs in Guatemala. The Narcotics Law Enforcement Project provides assistance to the Government of Guatemala in organizing, training, and equipping the Anti-Narcotics Unit (SAIA) for interdiction and eradication activities. It also supports the expansion of the activities of the anti-smuggling unit mobile team concept and continued operation of the Joint Information Collection Center.

INL support for the Narcotics Courts and Prosecutors Project has assisted the special narcotics prosecutors unit of the Attorney General's office to increase the number of prosecutors, provide professional training, develop a computerized case management system, and expand the program to the outlying regions of the country.

The Demand Reduction and Public Awareness Project supports the Executive Secretariat for the Commission against Addictions and Illicit Drug Trafficking (SECCATID) via seminars, educational program, intergovernmental cooperation, technical assistance and informational campaigns.

The Law Enforcement Development (LED) is a new program that was added to NAS [Narcotics Affairs Section] Guatemala when the ICITAP Program was closed in December of 2003. Through this program, NAS is addressing a number of law enforcement issues that deal with the National Civilian Police (PNC) in general, such as investigative policing, unification of Forensic Laboratories, and Internal Affairs (ORP) and inspections. LED also provides law enforcement expertise for the Villa Nueva Model Precinct Project, which seeks target gang activity at the organizational level, consistent with U.S. Department of Justice methodology in fighting this type of organized crime.

Finally, the Embassy's Narcotics Affairs Section has increased its role as a regional resource center providing administrative and training support for INL programs in neighboring countries.