From Child Soldier
to Child Champion

Gatkuoth Liah Diu

Founder & Executive Director, ACSS

At just ten years old, Gatkuoth Liah Diu was taken from his family and forced to become a child soldier. He was assigned to guard oil facilities in Block 5A in southern Sudan — a responsibility no child should ever bear.

His story became international when he was featured in historical television footage that was later submitted as evidence in Swedish courts. The world saw a young boy with a weapon, but behind that image was a child who had lost everything — his childhood, his family, and his freedom.

The Journey to Freedom

After escaping, Gatkuoth began the slow, painful process of rebuilding his life. He reunited with fragments of his family, accessed education, and discovered that learning was the most powerful form of liberation he had ever known.

It was during this period — sitting in makeshift classrooms, watching children arrive from other conflict areas, all carrying the same hollow eyes he had once worn — that he made a decision: he would dedicate his life to ensuring no child had to face what he faced alone.

Building ACSS

With a single safe house, three staff members, and the fierce conviction that every child deserved better than survival, Gatkuoth established Abandoned Child South Sudan. He brought not just compassion to the work — but intimate, first-hand understanding of what these children needed.

Today, ACSS operates 5 field offices across South Sudan, has helped 3 children, and is recognized as a leading child protection organization in the region. But Gatkuoth is quick to measure success differently.

Timeline of a Life Devoted to Children