From Slaughter House To Survival Grounds: The Story Of Gbartala Base 10 Years Later

Partial view of the remains of the notorious Gbartala Base where dreaded men and women, including child soldiers were trained to inflict terror on the Liberian people

“The first thing when they took you there, there is a big hole they used to put you in. You get snakes and other bad, bad things there. You will be there without food and water for three days and nights, and when you survive, then, you are good to go,” recounted a former Anti-Terrorist Unit (ATU) officer of the defunct infamous Gbartala training base in Gbartala, Kokoya District in Bong County.

The place once used as a slaughter ground, a community of torture and a ‘hell on earth’ in Liberia only ten years ago is today a source of livelihood and survival-making ground.

Looking more than a ghost town, shanty ramshackle buildings, tall grass and mostly plump (mango) trees welcome you to the once most feared place during the country’s bloodiest and destructive decades of war.