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Representatives from Leichhardt Municipal Council in Sydney recently travelled to East Timor to observe the historic parliamentary elections. The representatives, who are members of Leichhardt’s ‘Friends of Maliana’ group, also provided support for projects Council has initiated in Maliana and assisted with the rebuilding of this new nation.
Established in 2000, the Friends of Maliana group is a partnership project between Leichhardt Council, the Leichhardt community and Sydney Secondary College. The group is focused on assisting the people of Maliana, which is located west of Dili in East Timor.
Leichhardt Councillors Máire Sheehan and Damian Cobley-Finch, as well as Council’s Media Officer, Shane McArdle, took part in the United Nations Development Program visit in June. The group spent most of their time in Maliana observing the vote on Election Day, then observing the counting of ballot papers over subsequent days.
Shane McArdle said it was pleasing to be there for the Parliamentary elections.
“To watch the Timorese people beaming with pride as they exercised their democratic right to vote was an amazing experience,” he said. “The people of East Timor have a great future if they are able to put aside their differences and get on with the job of rebuilding vital infrastructure and services for future generations. For the community of Maliana, they know that Leichhardt Council and the community are with them all the way.”
The group also furthered local projects that they and Council have been supporting for the past seven years.
In 2001, Friends of Maliana raised over $20,000 to refurbish the Municipal Library in Maliana.
Council continues to provide funding to maintain the building, restock the library with much needed resources and pay for staffing.
The group is now working to raise funds to refurbish Maliana’s Municipal gymnasium building. This building is special to the people of Maliana as it was a place for good and bad. A place where people were tortured and killed during the troubles in 1999, the community now hopes to use the building to promote unity and reconciliation through regional gatherings and sporting events.
It is estimated that up to 80 per cent of East Timor’s vital infrastructure was destroyed following the successful referendum on independence in 1999. This is causing great hardship for the Timorese people.
For further information on how your Council can support East Timor, contact Shane McArdle on (02) 9367 9351.
