After it was revealed that 61 agents of the National Civil Police (PNC) were assigned to protect 17 deputies of the Congress of the RepublicThe Ministry of the Interior assured that the measure was annulled and the agents returned to their citizen security duties.
The Minister of the Interior, Francisco Jiménez, The identities of the deputies were reserved and clarified on Tuesday, July 16, that this is not a “revenge” once morest the legislators.
The ministry also specifically reserved the date on which the security measures for these 17 officials were assessed.
The minister, in a brief response, indicated that “The validity of its security scheme has already expired.”
Why the agents were removed
The Minister of the Interior explained in statements to the media that “A security plan is given to those who, in terms of their function, pose a security risk.”
According to the Minister, this does not refer to general risks, such as assaults when going out, but to the specific nature of their work.
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The Minister emphasized that “Risk analyses have a current temporality” and that, when these are no longer applicable, security is reconfigured.
“We are just applying a procedure that we normally apply”he said, clarifying that the decision is not personal but based on established conditions and procedures.
“The reconcentration – the security – is not due to the figure of a deputy. In other words, it is not that we are going to remove Juan, Pedro, but rather the conditions and the issue of procedure. Because otherwise it would be personal and this is not personal,” said the head of the Interior Ministry.
Regarding the possibility of deputies requesting a new risk analysis, the Minister stated: “It is being analysed, of course. The ministry should provide protection. That is not a problem.”
Although he did not offer exact figures, he mentioned that they are waiting for other deputies to finish their respective risk analyses.
In a previous statement, the ministry said that the 17 deputies “had been given benefits by the previous administration” through “verbal, unjustified protection without any risk analysis.”
The decision to re-concentrate staff is part of a strategy of the #MinistryOfInterior in order to make the human resources of the company efficient @PNCdeGuatemala.
To those who have sent me messages of support or surprise, I say that there is no tomorrow, #LaSeguridadEsHoy!
— Francisco Jimenez (@FJimenezmingob) July 16, 2024
Analysis
Lizandro Acuña, a security analyst, explained that the security provided by the National Civil Police must be based on a protocol that justifies its need, guaranteeing that the protection provided by the National Civil Police (PNC) is adequate and that no abuses are committed.
“Citizens only receive temporary and perimeter protection in high-impact cases, unlike some officials who require permanent custody due to specific risks”he explained regarding the rule.
However, according to the expert from the Institute of National Problems of the University of San Carlos (Ipnusac), its application must be justified by a risk analysis of this type of protection, it must be perimeter and temporary, and it must not be applied to officials without proven need.
Acuña stressed that “it is important that public forces are not used as private security without adequate justification.”
“The security provided by the PNC to public officials is perimeter-based and is based on demonstrable risks,” he said.
According to Acuña, “protection must be temporary and subject to periodic risk analysis.”
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