* Isaac Redd, survivor of the massacre, points to the house where he sought refuge

*Skeletons of Liberians massacred in Kpolokpala

By: Nat Bayjay,nbayjay2010@gmail.com (231-77-402737)

There were songs of praise and tears of sorrow as survivors and relatives of victims of the 1994 massacre gathered in a little village named Kpolokpala in Central Liberia, and buried the bones of victims from a gruesome murder of hundreds of escapees from Gbarnga. Gbarnga is the provincial capital of the Central county of Bong, and Kpolokpala is about 15 kilometers outside Gbarnga. The event which occurred about two weeks ago was in memory of that deadly day that followed the fall of Gbarnga, which served as a stronghold for Charles Taylor’s National Patriotic Front of Liberia (NPFL) rebels. Gbarnga fell to forces of the United Liberation Movement (Ulimo K) and the Liberia Peace Council (LPC)—two other rebel groups during the Liberian civil war.

The ceremony was organized by the Young Women Organized for Development (YWOSD) in collaboration with DEN Liberia and the Christian community in Gbarnga. Tributes were paid by relatives of the victims as well as survivors. Horrible accounts of the massacre were given by residents of the town and those who escaped Gbarnga to seek refuge in other villages.

The Kpolokpala Massacre is one of several massacres that were carried out during the senseless 14 years of brutal destruction. Like the Kpolokpa incidence, there are dozens of other untold massacres that were meted out on innocent Liberians by the country’s various warring groups.

All the speakers attributed the killings to forces of Dr. George Bolay’s LPC. The LPC had used the Kokoyah route, a major road in Gbarnga, to advance on Gbarnga from Buchanan in Grand Bassa County. Gbarnga had earlier fallen to coalition Forces and ULIMO K on September 8, 1994.

The massacre occurred on a Sunday, the 18 of September, 1994. Grace Veanay, executive director of the organization, YWOSD, and the Bethel Church local pastor Lahai Sesay, said the burial of the corpses should bring reflection and heal the wounds of the relatives of those who were murdered. No one knows how many victims there were from the massacre, but there were 95 skulls and other body parts found in the cocoa bushes. Some of those remembered as victims included Cllr. Clarence Harmon, Sam Farrah, Moses Okai, Francis G. Redd, Jr. and Junior Jallah.

Narrating his story of survival in tears, broadcast journalist Isaac Redd, said his survival could be credited to God. He explained that when he found out the LPC was killing people with cutlasses, he told a lie to one General T that he did not know Gbarnga, but had come to Gbarnga only a day before Gbarnga fell for his sick mother, Emma Redd, who herself was captured by the LPC forces. He did know that they had killed his elder brother gruesomely. He narrated that he slept in ropes and was untied the next morning and ordered to carry a half bag of rockets to proceed to Gbarnga, where the actual battle was pending. “I escaped by 3:20 PM on Monday, September 19, 1994 after the fighting intensified between LPC and ULIMO K for control of Taylor’s residence in Gbarnga.”