4 were made against his wife and family, inter alia, "you're very pretty, I'm going to leave you a widow", "I'm going to take these two bastards from you", referring to his children. 19. The petitioners allege that based on these threats and acts of harassment, in October 1996, Mr. Vélez and his wife turned to the Procurator General's Office and the Public Prosecutor, and handed over the written threats received at work to the Administrative Department of Security, but none of these complaints led to the trial and punishment of those responsible. Due to this, Mr. Vélez had to change where he lived. The petitioners indicate that the threats temporarily stopped after Mr. Vélez Restrepo told two influential government employees of the harassment. 20. The petitioners stress that despite this short lull, the death threats resumed and intensified after Mr. Vélez Restrepo gave evidence in August 1997 before the Procurator General for the facts occurring during the demonstration in Caquetá and for the threats suffered by him and his family. The petitioners point out that these death threats sought to persuade him not to testify against the Army. The petitioners maintain that Mr. Vélez Restrepo reported the new threats to the Public Prosecutor’s Office and he was verbally told that his reports would be taken into account in a large-scale investigation conducted against certain military officials and that even if any measures were taken against them, it would not be within a short period of time. 21. The petitioners alleged that in addition to the telephone calls and threatening visits to his home, his son Mateo was photographed at school by an unknown man on board a motorcycle. The petitioners indicate that Mr. Vélez Restrepo withdrew his son from the school and that their family was practically living in hiding. In addition, the petitioners point out that Mr. Vélez Restrepo, at various times, recognized military personnel among his persecutors. 22. The petitioners state that in response to the restart of the threats, Mr. Vélez requested the help of the Colombian Commission of Jurists, an organization that in September 1997 wrote to the Presidential Council for Human Rights (COPDH) and the Interior Ministry insisting on the State's duty to investigate the threats against the Vélez Román family and requesting protection for them. On October 3, 1997, they repeated their obligation to investigate the threats against the Vélez Román family and requesting protection for them. On October 3, 1997, in light of the lack of response to this communication, Mr. Vélez visited the COPDH in person in order to request protection for himself and his family. The petitioners point out that the COPDH organized a meeting for the Vélez family with the Special Administrative Unit for Human Rights of the Interior Ministry. Once this meeting had taken place, and given the seriousness of the threats, the State decided to register them in the Ministry's Witness and Threatened Persons Protection Program for Cases Involving Human Rights Violations, and agreed to provide police protection to Mr. Vélez at his house, to supply him with a bullet-proof vest, and to study his security. The petitioners state that on the day after this meeting with the Interior Ministry, two employees of the Administrative Department for Security (DAS) started to guard the Vélez family home and to accompany Mr. Vélez to and from work. 23. The petitioners indicate that the death threats and the harassment suffered by the family reached its peak on October 5 and 6, 1997. They allege that on October 5, Mr. Vélez received a card stating, "Mr. Vélez: toads get squashed". According to the petitioners, "in the Republic of Colombia, these cards are seen as a sign that the recipient is going to be killed within the following 24 hours". The petitioners confirm that on the following day, October 6, employees of the DAS who were acting as Mr. Vélez's armed bodyguard did not arrive at his home, and when he left on foot for his work, he suffered an "attempted forced disappearance". They point out that a taxi pulled up and a man armed with a gun forced Mr. Vélez to get into the vehicle. Fortunately he managed to free himself from his attackers and flee. Mr. Vélez Restrepo states that the recognized military personnel among them.