79 158. Article 2(1) of ILO Convention No. 29 contains the definition of forced labor examined in this case. This provision can throw light on the content and scope of Article 6(2) of the American Convention. The State ratified Convention No. 29 on March 4, 1969. 159. Article 2(1) of ILO convention No. 29 establishes that: The term "forced or compulsory labour" shall mean all work or service which is exacted from any person under the menace of any penalty and for which the said person has not offered himself voluntarily. 160. The Court observes that, according to the ILO Convention, the definition of forced or compulsory labour consists of two basic elements. First, the work or service is exacted “under the menace of a penalty.” Second, it is performed involuntarily. Furthermore, the Court finds that, to constitute a violation of Article 6(2) of the American Convention, it is necessary that the alleged violation can be attributed to State agents, either due to their direct participation or to their acquiescence to the facts. The Court will proceed to examine the facts of this case in light of these three factors. i) The menace of a penalty 161. For the effects of this case, the “menace of a penalty” can consist in the real and actual presence of a threat, which can assume different forms and degrees, of which the most extreme are those that imply coercion, physical violence, isolation or confinement, or the threat to kill the victim or his next of kin.178 162. The Court considers that “the menace of a penalty” is evident in this case in its most extreme form, which is a direct and implicit threat of physical violence or death addressed at the victim or his next of kin. 163. According to the statements submitted in this case, both before the Court and before the domestic instances, the herdsmen were explicitly threatened with death if they tried to escape. These direct threats were complemented by a context of extreme violence in which the herdsmen were deprived of their liberty, taken to localities that were far from their place of residence, at times, and then obliged to assemble stolen livestock by heavily-armed men who had just perpetrated the arbitrary execution of other villagers with the acquiescence or tolerance of members of the Army. In addition, far from protecting the life and liberty of the herdsmen, members of the Army received some of the stolen livestock, thus contributing to the herdsmen’s feelings of defenselessness and vulnerability. ii) Unwillingness to perform the work or service 164. “Unwillingness to perform the work or service” consists in the absence of consent or free choice when the situation of forced labor begins or continues. This can occur for different reasons, such as illegal deprivation of liberty, deception or psychological coercion. 178 Cf. Global report under the Follow-up to the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work, “A Global Alliance against Forced Labour,” International Labour Conference, 93rd session, 2005.