Opinion ID: 150723
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: 1999 Torture of Rufus Kpadeh (Count Five)

Text: The Liberian town of Voinjama was again attacked in August 1999, and, again, residents, including farmer and furniture-maker Rufus Kpadeh, fled the city. At trial, Kpadeh testified in detail about his flight from Voinjama and, ultimately, his terrifying ordeal at the hands of Emmanuel and the ATU. From Voinjama, Kpadeh fled with his family, first on foot and then on a truck operated by a non-governmental organization. Armed ATU soldiers stopped the truck at the St. Paul River Bridge Checkpoint and ordered the male passengers to step down. ATU soldiers detained Kpadeh after they searched his bag and found an identification card from the Unity Party, a non-violent political party opposing the Taylor regime. Emmanuel, who was dressed in an ATU uniform and had a pistol at his side, interrogated Kpadeh, asking him if he was a rebel. Kpadeh said he was not. Emmanuel then asked Kpadeh if he would fight for him. Kpadeh said he would not because he did not believe in war. On Emmanuel's orders, ATU soldiers stripped Kpadeh naked, tied his legs, bound his arms tabie-style, blindfolded him, and took him by truck to Gbatala Base. Once at Gbatala Base, Emmanuel ordered that Kpadeh be placed in something known as the Vietnam Prison, and ordered Compari, the base commander, to torture Kpadeh until he told the truth. Before putting Kpadeh in the prison, Compari plunged him, still bound, into a creek four times, holding his head underwater. At Emmanuel's express instruction, Compari then cut the underside of Kpadeh's genitals with a knife. At the Vietnam Prison, Kpadeh was put in a five-foot-deep pit covered with metal bars and containing chest-high water in which, still naked, he was forced to squat. Kpadeh shared his pit with other prisoners, all of whom were forced to urinate in the stagnant water. By the time Kpadeh's elbows were untied, his arms and hands were numb. Kpadeh never received medical attention for the wounds on his genitals, which continued to bleed for two weeks. Kpadeh was kept naked in the pits at Gbatala Base and was repeatedly abused for approximately two months. He was removed from the pits only to be tortured or to defecate. The abuse was worse on the days Emmanuel visited the base. Once, Emmanuel ordered Kpadeh to run the rim for 45 minutes, meaning that Kpadeh was forced to run in a large circle with a heavy, six-foot log on one shoulder, while ATU soldiers would strike the log with a metal rod, causing extreme pain to shoot through Kpadeh's body. On another occasion, Emmanuel ordered Kpadeh, along with other Gbatala Base prisoners, to play soccer with a large stone and no shoes, causing their feet to bleed and bruise. Emmanuel watched and laughed. On still another occasion, Emmanuel forced Kpadeh to sodomize another prisoner and also to be sodomized, again while Emmanuel watched and laughed. ATU soldiers would also beat Kpadeh, burn him with melted plastic, jab him with the iron used to clean the barrel of a gun, and shovel stinging ants onto his body. He and the other prisoners were forced to eat cigarette butts and drink their own urine. During his nearly two months of captivity, Kpadeh, like Turay, Jusu, and Conteh, was never charged with a crime, brought before a judge, or allowed any legal representation. In October 1999, Kpadeh was released from Gbatala Base; his release coincided with media reports about Gbatala Base and pressure from human rights groups. Just prior to his release, the ATU gave him soap to bathe, had his hair cut, and provided him with clothing, all while instructing him not to tell the human rights organizations about Gbatala Base. He received medical treatment at a Monrovia hospital for three months. Kpadeh currently resides in Liberia and lives with residual scars, pain, and limited functioning of one hand as a result of his time at Gbatala Base.