ever-changing landscape is the emergence of new armed groups, aligned with or opposed to the Government, that also pose threats to victims and witnesses and to the commission’s/ mission’s staff. It may be difficult to gather accurate information about all the armed groups that may be operating in an area to assess the risks and identify alleged perpetrators. Often, different armed groups may be operating in different regions without coordination, requiring separate negotiations with each group to obtain safe access to different parts of a city or town. The prevailing security situation could also be a reason for the Government to refuse the commission/mission access to the country or to certain regions, or to insist that it should be accompanied by its security forces, which could hamper the commission’s/mission’s work. Most situations in which a commission/mission works present considerable challenges for the protection of victims and witnesses. During an armed conflict, these challenges are even greater. The difficulty in obtaining information to conduct an accurate assessment of the threats and risks faced by victims and witnesses and the sources of such threats has an impact on the commission’s/mission’s ability to gauge what measures may be adequate to prevent risk of harm. In such situations, commissions/missions may need to take additional precautionary measures and seek to obtain the information in other ways than through direct contact. Conflict usually leads to the breakdown of governance structures, with no recognized or legitimate authority for the commission/mission to interact with. Communications with the central Government may not be recognized in all parts of the country, and may require the commission/mission to enter into additional negotiations with those in control of a region to gain access to victims, witnesses and sites. Some armed groups may have a negative perception of the international community and may refuse to cooperate. The absence of government structures may also make it difficult to access information from government sources, and the conflict may have resulted in the loss or destruction of information held in government buildings and archives. On the other hand, accessing places such as detention centres and archives of government institutions may be made easier by looser authority structures. Certain circumstances – such as possible lack of control by some armed groups over their fighters, publication of video and photographic materials, use of social media to obtain support or for propaganda – also provide opportunities to harvest valuable information on violations and perpetrators, or leads on incidents soon after they have occurred. Internal armed conflict usually results in the displacement of large numbers of people within the country and in neighbouring countries. A common consequence of a continuing armed conflict is the creation of transient communities, with the population fleeing to safety and then fleeing again when its safety is threatened. This presents considerable challenges for the commission/mission to locate and interview victims and witnesses. Each victim or witness may have information related to different incidents and may thus require substantial GUIDANCE AND PRACTICE 57