WOSCAP Report on Justice and Security Sector Reform in Honduras and Guatemala

This desk study reviews the literature on EU programmes that supported security and justice reform in Guatemala and Honduras, focusing on two programs: the programme in support of the security sector (PASS) in Honduras and the International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG). The former was an EU led programme, almost entirely funded by the EU, the latter is a hybrid UN organisation, co-funded by the EU.

The first section of the report provides some background information about the political context in the Central American isthmus, and in particular in Guatemala and Honduras. The next section briefly reflects on the development of the relationships between the Central American region and the EU. The longest section of the report discusses the two programmes separately. Each case starts with a brief introduction and some background information, moves on with a presentation of the development of the programme over time, and finalizes with a discussion of different assessments and evaluations of the intervention.

While a comparison between the two cases on the specific role played by the EU is not possible, the two cases do provide interesting and important lessons about the room of maneuver for justice and security sector reform in what can be considered adverse contexts.

Read the full report here.