Timor Leste

 “Oh! Freedom!“

If I could only
in the cold mornings 
wake up shivering
beaten by the gale
which opens for me the curtain of the sky,
and see, from the top of my hills,
the purple painting of a disturbed sunrise 
east of Timor

If I could only 
in the scorching suns
ride in raptures 
towards the finding of myself 
in the serene plains of the pasture,
and feel the smell of animals 
drinking from the springs 
which would murmur in the air,
legends of Timor

If I could only 
in the calm afternoons 
feel that tiredness 
of the sensuous nature 
stretching itself in its own sweat
and listen to the telling of the wearinesses 
within the laughters 
of the naked barefoot children 
of all Timor

If I could only 
at the darkening of the waves 
walk by the sand
absorbed in myself 
in the wet rapture of the breeze 
and touch the immensity of the sea
in a breath of soul 
which let me dream the future 
of the island of Timor

by Xanana Gusmao, President Poet.

One of the poorest countries in Asia, East Timor (Timor-Leste), situated north of Australia and east of Indonesia, is lacking in basic infrastructure and access to water after a decades long struggle for independence against Indonesia. 50 – 60% of East Timorese are malnourished due to a diet consisting of mainly rice and carbohydrates. Women in Timor Leste have endured years of violent oppression, abuse of human rights, displacement and sexual violence.

This is a photo essay on Soibada, a remote mountain village in the centre of the country.

Photos by Tanya Lake

Young girls hold offerings for church. They have travelled overland by truck and by foot, for a week to arrive in Soibada, an international pilgrimage site. Due to nearly 300 years of Portuguese colonisation, before 25 years of Indonesian invasion and then independence in 2002, 99% of East Timorese are devoutly Catholic.

A mother holds her child in the remote mountain village of Tasi Fatin, hoping for medication for her sick child.

A woman burns rubbish in the remote mountain village of Soibada .

Orphans at the farewell party. At 16 yrs old, orphans must leave their remote mountain orphanage near the village of Soibada. Here younger orphans look on as their colleagues graduate. Most will travel to the capital Dili where they hope to find employment as cleaners, or as nuns in a convent.

Artist Patricio Cruz Quintao stands on his front porch with his children. After learning his craft of painting in Jakarta, Indonesia, Cruz Quintao returned to his remote village to paint life as he understood it; illustrating the clash of cultures with children leaving the natural world for screens and becoming removed from society due to Nintendo & Facebook .

A girl idles in a tree in Soibada .

Children from the remote mountain village of Tasi Fatin gather in the community hall .

Sister Manuela and one of her former children. Sister Manuela is one of 2 nuns who run a remote mountain orphanage, raising around 200 children, many of whose parents were killed in the war of independence against Indonesia. Here she walks with a graduated orphan, now living independently. Although he towers over her he treats her with utmost respect.

Women and children in the remote village of Tasi Fatin .

Villagers gather in the open walled community hall in Tasi Fatin .

A young orphan peers through the gates of an orphanage near the remote village of Soibada, Timor Leste .

A religious statue and electricity socket in the community hall in Soibada.

Children play whilst bathing in the river near the remote Soibada village . For half the year when the rains come, the river blocks the road and access to the outside world.

 

 

 

The remote village of Soibada

 

 

For more information on travelling to Soibada, or for information on how to help you can check out: Pittwater friends of Soibada. Medical or engineering expertise is warmly welcomed.