Part II: Preventing torture: NHRIs in action are worth noting. The “do no harm” principle should guide NHRIs throughout the interview process, including preparation, conduct and follow-up. NHRIs have the responsibility to ensure the physical and psychological safety and well-being of interviewees. In this regard, NHRIs need to carefully assess the potential risk of harm to the interviewee, including the gender dynamics and cultural norms that may result in victims and witnesses being exposed to further harm, such as re-traumatization or stigma, violence and marginalization.88 1. Purpose of an interview An interview allows you to: • gather many different pieces of information from a single interviewee • respond to information that the interviewee gives you • cross-check information that you already have • assess whether the interviewee is credible • provide the interviewee with the chance to tell their story. A key challenge you can face is that the reason you are conducting the interview may not be the same as the reason the interviewee agreed to speak with you. As a result, what the interviewee wants to tell you may not be the information you are looking to collect. In these situations you should pursue your objective at the same time as respecting the interviewee’s wish to share information that is important to them. You have no power to make someone tell you something they do not want to share. Gather many pieces of information from a single interviewee An interview allows people to describe events that they have experienced. At the simplest level, someone you are interviewing might primarily talk about something that has happened to them. However, they may also have knowledge of other people’s cases and the information they provide may help corroborate another person’s testimony. It may also help determine whether there is a pattern of torture or if it is a systemic practice. Respond to information that the interviewee provides One of the benefits of conducting interviews is the opportunity to respond directly to information that is provided by the interviewee and to ask follow-up questions. This interaction with the interviewee may help you to understand an issue in greater detail or provide new and revealing information on an issue that you had not anticipated. Cross-check information Interviews may also allow you to cross-check and confirm – or not – information that you have collected from other sources. Assess whether the witness is credible The interview process provides you with an important opportunity to assess the credibility of the person and the information they are providing. While it is difficult to describe precisely how you assess this, there is no doubt that a face-to-face interview is more effective than relying on a written statement. This is why courts rely on oral testimonies of witnesses rather than just written statements. When someone is telling their own story in their own words, it allows you to determine whether you think they are telling the truth. An interview also allows you to ask difficult questions, which a person who is not telling the truth might prefer to avoid. It also requires the interviewee to respond to questions immediately, rather than having time to prepare a written response. Asking the same question in different ways can also help test whether the person’s story is consistent. 88 OHCHR, Integrating a gender perspective into human rights investigations: Guidance and practice (2018), p. 25. 65