The Friends of Suai was the first of over 50 friendship groups that formed in 2000 and afterwards in order to assist East Timor rebuild. The Friends of Suai is funded by the Port Phillip Council and donations from Port Phillip residents. The Friends of Suai in Port Phillip responds with help and funding to requests from the Friends of Suai in Suai, who in turn respond to needs and requests from their community. The group in Suai is co-ordinated by Simao Barretto with the help of staff and the Friends of Suai Commission there.
The Projects: 2009 is the ninth year of Friends of Suai and Pat Jessen and volunteers will keep you informed of their projects, activities and events through news, events and Friends of Suai Project Posts. Projects are as variable as money for a Permaculture Garden next to a school through to IT education, a Media Project and English classes. All the projects are decided upon jointly with the Friends of Suai workers in Suai and the Friends of Suai Committee in Port Phillip.
The People: Pat Jessen (centre front) is the present Co-ordinator of the Friends of Suai based in St Kilda Town Hall Port Phillip. Simao Barretto (left front) is the Suai Co-ordinator.
The Places: Covalima Suai is the largest town in the south-west border district of Covalima near the West Timor Border. Port Phillip is on Port Phillip Bay which is the entrance to Port Melbourne, in Victoria, Australia. Image taken from protest art in Timorese banner in Dili.
Solidarity since 1975 and mateship since WW2 led to the possibility for the formation of the The Friends of Suai. The history of Australia’s relationship with East Timor was marked by spurts of growth also in 1991 and 1999 as more and more people in Port Phillip and elsewhere became involved in the Timorese struggle for independence. ( Image taken from Timorese protest banner 2003).
The Documentary Project began in December 1999 at the first meeting of the Friends of Suai. It began to take it’s present form after a meeting between the documentary-maker and Ergilio Vicente of the Covalima Youth Centre in 2000. The stories will be unpacked over the next twelve months to give you a glimpse into the highs and lows of a friendship of this kind through interviews, clips and documentary stories.
