Pursuant to Article 3(1)(c) of the Agreement to Establish the International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala, CICIG provides technical advice and assistance to institutions of the State that are of importance to the investigation and criminal prosecution of crimes perpetrated by alleged members of illicit security groups.

Program to Support Judicial Reform in Guatemala (PARJ)

CICIG provides technical assistance to the Program to Support Judicial Reform in Guatemala, which is financed using European Union funding and focuses on strengthening the Ministry of the Interior and the Public Prosecutor's Office (MP). The Program has supported specialist institutions of the State that participate in corruption and money laundering investigations carried out into special units of the Public Prosecutor's Office, the Specialized Division of Criminal Investigation (DEINC) of the National Civil Police, as well as the protection units of the Public Prosecutor's Office.

Witness protection

CICIG provides technical assistance to the re-structuring of the office for the protection of witnesses and other parties to the proceedings. One of the main weaknesses of the program, as indentified by CICIG, was the lack of a trained police unit that works exclusively to protect the witnesses accepted into the program. To this end, CICIG provided basic training to 48 graduates of the National Civil Police Academy; they represent the only personal protection unit of the witness protection programs.

Telephone tapping

On November 24, 2008, the "Interinstitutional Agreement to Establish and Introduce the Use of a Phone Tapping System" was signed by the Attorney General, the Ministry of the Interior and CICIG. The Commission assisted with negotiations to fund the equipment, the necessary equipment was obtained and a centre to monitor communications was created for the purpose of intercepting different forms of communication. The Public Prosecutor's Office (MP) is responsible for carrying out the process, after receiving judicial authorization, pursuant to the Anti-organized Crime Law.

National Agreement for the Advancement of Security and Justice

The National Agreement was signed on April 15, 2009 by the President of the Republic, Álvaro Colom; President of the Congress, Roberto Alejos; President of the Supreme Court of Justice, Eliú Higueros; and the Attorney General, Amílcar Velázquez Zárate. According to the provisions of the Agreement, the signatories back the extension of CICIG's mandate, and they will support its fulfillment as well as receiving technical support from CICIG.

The National Agreement contains 101 commitments related to the adoption of measures that the State of Guatemala must implement in the area of security and justice. The main topics are:

• Policies and an institutional framework for security
• Police reform
• The prison system
• Policies and institutions of criminal investigation and of anti-impunity investigation
• Administration of justice
• Arms control
• Private security and services companies
• Social communication and participation
• Legislative agenda
• Commitments to act together with signatories of the agreement