A/HRC/32/35 Convention. In addition to situations of armed conflict and disaster-induced displacement, both standards explicitly apply to those displaced by generalized violence. The prohibition of arbitrary displacement includes displacement based on policies of apartheid, ethnic cleansing, racial discrimination or other similar practices aimed at or resulting in altering the ethnic, religious or racial composition of the affected population, as well as displacement caused by other violations of human rights or used as a collective punishment. 61. Generalized violence may be gang-related or criminal in nature, or may be violence targeted at minority ethnic, religious, political or other groups. It may be caused or triggered by specific events, such as elections, or it may be associated with development projects. It may affect a small group in a localized area or a large, widely dispersed community. Intimidation, harassment or the threat of violence may also trigger displacement. In some situations, the international community may recognize internal displacement situations while a national Government denies or downplays the situation. Consequently, political will to deal with internal displacement instead of denying it remains a vital component of appropriate national and international action, since acknowledgment of the issue within a particular context is the vital first step towards addressing it. 62. Many regions are affected by generalized violence resulting in internal displacement. For example, Central America, including the Northern Triangle countries of El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras, is deeply affected by generalized and gang-related violence. The Special Rapporteur visited Honduras in November 2015 and found that displacement as a result of gang-related (maras) and generalized violence is widespread and there is an “invisible epidemic” affecting whole communities and neighbourhoods. For many, the only option to escape threats, extortion and violence by the maras is to leave their homes and, often, their country. 20 The Special Rapporteur commended the Government of Honduras for being the first in the region to publicly acknowledge the problem and to undertake an in-depth profiling to gain a better understanding of the situation. He urged it to put in place overdue protection measures for internally displaced persons. 63. Essential to national responses are legislative, policy and institutional frameworks that explicitly guarantee protection and assistance to internally displaced persons. Governments must be active in ensuring implementation and exhaustive in their activities to identify such persons who are victims of general or criminal violence and reach them with relevant information, documentation, protection and assistance linked to durable solutions. Where no protection measures exist, internally displaced persons often find protection in anonymity and become dispersed and “invisible”, often within poor urban communities. Reaching them requires the flow of information and the establishment of such measures as helplines to inform people of their rights and the services available to them. Profiling can also be a practical, protection-sensitive tool for understanding the situation of these displaced communities to inform relevant responses. 64. All countries, particularly those in which there has been a history of violence, ethnic, religious or political tensions or other factors leading to population movements, should remain vigilant to the possibility of forced or arbitrary internal displacement due to general violence, even in the absence of armed conflict, and ensure that they respond appropriately and according to international standards to prevent and respond to such internal displacement. In this regard, social and statistical research should be undertaken to reveal 20 To that end, the Special Rapporteur prepared reports on internally displaced persons who are out of camp and those in urban settings, with a view to adopting a policy position at the Inter-Agency Standing Committee, and indeed the Committee responded favourably to the initiative, which has to be taken forward. 15