Concerned that the kidnappers are not releasing their father, star player for Liverpool Luis Diaz, his family has requested confirmation that he is alive from those holding him captive.
Despite stating at the end of last week that it was working on Luis Manuel Diaz’s release as soon as possible, the terrorist organization has not fulfilled its commitment to release him thus far.
The father-of-four Luis Manuel is thought to be detained in the Perija Mountains on Colombia’s border with Venezuela, and the organization claimed that the Colombian government was impeding its attempts by keeping a heavy military and police presence there.
The family of football player trainer Luis Manuel is still going through the 11-day nightmare, even though the government responded by ordering the withdrawal of troops and elite police to Barrancas, where the father-of-four was abducted on October 28.
The brother of the missing guy, Gabi, acknowledged that they are concerned and have pleaded with the terrorist organization, ELN, to provide evidence that the 58-year-old is still alive.
He stated: “My father is here and wants to see his son. What we would most like is to have that proof by seeing him and knowing what situation our brother, our relative, our papa, and our son is in.”
“We are asking the ELN to send us proof of how Luis Manuel is now so we can have some peace of mind,” the football player’s cousin Luis Alfonso Diaz said to Colombian national broadcaster RNC.
Government representatives and the Colombian media, which has suggested that the requests are a ploy to buy time while it negotiates a ransom demand, are echoing the demands and accusing the captors of playing games.
Salud Hernandez-Mora, a Colombian journalist, issued the following warning on Thursday of last week after the government named the ELN as the kidnappers, around the time it became clear that one of its regional units, the Northern War Front, was responsible for the crime:
The kidnapping of Lucho Diaz’s parents followed the same pattern of operation as past kidnaps this criminal gang has committed. And they just give millions in return for people’s freedom. He stated
“It’s vital the ELN hands over proof Luis Manuel Diaz is alive, so his family and the country can see he is in good conditions and is indeed in the hands of the Northern War Front,” respected Colombian media site Semana stated.
Following orders for military and police to retreat from the primary search area, Otty Patino, the senior negotiator for the Colombian government in the continuing peace talks with the ELN that began prior to the kidnapping on October 28, stated on Monday that the ELN was taking too long to release its hostage.
Speaking of a now-passed deadline, he continued, “They should free Mr. Diaz today; there’s no reason why they shouldn’t.”
