of the interviewee at the conclusion of each interview and determine whether any further assistance to the victim/witness may be required, and then discuss this with the victim/witness. Furthermore, the interviewer should assess whether the interview achieved the objectives and consider possible further lines of inquiry. 144 3.4.2 Documenting Information on Psychological Injury Harm done to an individual may well be mental rather than or in addition to physical injuries. However, even though a certain level of psychological suffering is expected in a conflict situation, avoid making assumptions to this effect as this may further stigmatize the victim/witness by labeling them prematurely. Psychological evaluations can provide important information/evidence of the harm done and the violations that have occurred. Certain symptoms may help direct professionals to uncover what has happened and what psychological injury the individual involved may be suffering from. 145 Moreover, information on psychological injury is important to acquire/refer the appropriate support to victims/witnesses. Bear in mind that only expert psychologists can make a psychological assessment. Nevertheless, unofficial investigators may contribute to this by documenting their observations of an individual’s behavior as well as what the individual shares with regard to nightmares, suicidal thoughts, or other indicators that may point to psychological injury. Such documentation may be helpful to an expert at a later point in time. 146 If the interviewer concludes that no professional expert is available and that this information is important for those that have been affected by the serious human rights violations at hand, it is crucial to be aware of the vulnerability of the individual(s) involved, to uphold the do no harm principle, and to only proceed with this kind of questioning with the 144 United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Anti-human Trafficking manual for criminal justice practitioners, module 8: Interviewing victims of trafficking in persons who are potential witnesses, 46 (2009), available at http://www.unodc.org/documents/human-trafficking/TIP_module8_Ebook.pdf. 145 Anne Goldfeld, Richard Mollica, Barbara Pesavento and Stephen Faraone, The Physical and Psychological Sequelae of Torture: Symptomatology and Diagnosis, 259(18) THE JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION 2725, 2728 (1988) 146 Camille Giffard, THE TORTURE REPORTING HANDBOOK, 49 (2000), available at http://www.essex.ac.uk/torturehandbook/handbook%28english%29.pdf. 105

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