A House with Two Rooms - The Advocates for Human Rights

Physically crossing the border was a challenge described by many statement givers. Whether on foot,
by car, or by boat, it was a journey fraught with danger. Many Liberians coming out of Grand Gedeh
and Nimba counties crossed the Cavally River 113 between Liberia and Côte d’Ivoire. They describe
crossing the river by dugout canoe, floating on a tree, or swimming across. 114 Several statement givers
described losing family members during these crossings.
The river was filled with water. My mother, brother, and sister got in [the]
canoe. I was too afraid to get into the canoe, and stayed on shore. [The c]
anoe capsized, and only the canoe driver survived. My whole family died.
However, other people still convinced me to cross the river. 115
Another statement giver described his ordeal getting into Côte d’Ivoire, which involved an escorted
taxi run by soldiers trying to make an extra dollar.
These soldiers would take passengers to their destination at a certain time of
night; this was the only real method for escaping out of Liberia. The night I
attempted to make the trip, a fire fight between two rebel factions took place
and we were caught in the crossfire. That night I saw many innocent refugees
trying to make their way into the Ivory Coast, many of them ultimately
killed in their attempt to escape to the border. 116
Entering Sierra Leone was also treacherous. Crossing the Mano River at the Bo Waterside checkpoint
often led to detention, forced recruitment, or death. 117 One public hearing witness described his
experience to the TRC:
Bo is a big town between Cape Mount and Sierra Leone…They were doing
some investigation and interrogation in the desert huts. When you go in
there, you most likely [don’t] come out. So I say…I’m going to sit here and
wait for the group [coming] out, and then…I can probably try to slip my way
through there. So I tried to do that the first time. Then people were looking,
so I went back. So I tried the second time. People were looking; I went back.
So the third time when I tried, no one was looking, so I joined the single-file
line. So that’s how I crossed to Sierra Leone. 118
Another statement giver described crossing by sea into Sierra Leone on a fishing boat, avoiding Bo
altogether. 119
At the borders, refugees were still subject to human rights abuses as they attempted to flee to safety.
Refugees reported extortion, arbitrary arrest and detention, and refoulement (forced repatriation or
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