3 II. POSITION OF THE PARTIES A. The Petitioners On the alleged attack suffered by Mr. Luis Gonzalo Vélez Restrepo on August 29, 1996 13. From their initial briefs, the petitioners allege that on August 29, 1996, Mr. Luis Gonzalo Vélez Restrepo, in the course of his employment as a journalist and cameraman for Colombia 12:30 news, went to the town of Morelia, in the Department of Caquetá in order to cover the peaceful demonstrations of some peasants protesting against the attempt to eradicate the coca leaf crop in the region. 14. The petitioners maintain that on the said date, torrential rain caused flooding to the peasants' temporary camp. They wished to cross a bridge guarded by 36th Infantry Battalion of the 12th National Army Brigade and in attempting to do so, the members of the said battalion started to shoot at them, to savagely beat them and launch tear gas to prevent them moving forward. Mr. Vélez Restrepo, who was filming the events, was accosted by three soldiers of the said battalion who demanded that he hand over his camera film, insulted him and pointed a gun at his head. The petitioners stress that when Mr. Vélez Restrepo refused to hand over his film, they started to hit him with their rifle barrels and kick him, shouting "give us the damned film". His camera was broken as a consequence of the attacks but the footage of the incident was still recorded and disseminated in Colombia and around the world. 15. The petitioners point out that, due to the physical aggression he suffered, Mr. Luis Gonzalo Vélez Restrepo lost consciousness after the attack and was taken as an emergency case to the Inmaculada María de Florencia Hospital and later transferred to the Asistir Clinic in Bogotá, where he remained for two days and required 15 days’ convalescence at home. The petitioners maintain that because of the attack he suffered a ruptured liver, profuse bleeding, the loss of one testicle, several fractured ribs and multiple blows on the body and legs. 16. The petitioners state that the aggression suffered by Mr. Vélez Restrepo on August 29, 1996, fits a pattern of threats and violence against journalists in Colombia, and of impunity for these acts. On the alleged threats, acts of harassment and intimidation, the attempted kidnapping and consequent forced exile 17. The petitioners point out that the threats and acts of harassment and intimidation started a couple of weeks after the August 1996 attacks against Mr. Vélez Restrepo in Caquetá. The petitioners allege that they received a series of telephone calls making death threats against both the journalist and his family. The petitioners point out that on September 11, 1996, unknown individuals knocked on the Vélez family's door, and when Mr. Luis Gonzalo Vélez Restrepo was not home, pretended to be officials from the Procurator General's Office and tried to obtain information on the journalist's schedule. They state that on the same day, the Chief Editor of Colombia 12.30 brought these facts to the attention of the Procurator General's Office. 18. The petitioners state that due to a statement that Mr. Vélez Restrepo made before the Military Court at the end of September 1996 in relation to the attacks against him and the group of peasants in Caquetá, the threats drastically worsened. The petitioners mention the following as an example of some of the written, telephone and personal threats against Mr. Vélez Restrepo: "you're going to die you son of a bitch", "you have the power of information, but we have the power of guns. You're going to die, you dog". In addition, they detail that the following threats