Maryborough Advertiser, 8 Nov. 2002
Visions of East Timor
Through the Friends of East Timor Group Maryborough has helped the village of Loi Huno to recover after a long fight for independence. Maryborough resident, Rod Simpson, recently visited the village to see how else we can help. Here is his story.
The village of Loi Huno stretches along a narrow valley over a distance of about 1.5 kilometres.
A waterfall, fed from an underground stream high above the valley, supplies good quality water to the village. About a dozen large concrete fish ponds, measuring 10 metres by five metres, are fed with water from the waterfall. Unfortunately not many fish were present due to a lack of fish food, which is imported from Indonesia. The village simply cannot afford to purchase fish food as few people earn an income. East Timor is one of the world's poorest nations, the average income being $1 per day. Houses with a framework of bamboo walls made from woven bamboo matting and roofs thatched with palm fronds, are clustered along the valley. Goats, pigs and poultry wander through the village in search of food. Numerous roosters wake the village at dawn with their crowing. Some houses have small vegetable gardens, fenced off to keep out the pigs and goats. I was told it was difficult to grow vegetables as the weather was too hot. Water from the base of the waterfall is channelled through the village - one channel being for sewerage purposes. Two timber planks placed about 800 millimetres apart across the channel suffices as the toilet for each household. Women wash clothing in large tubs set beside one of the water channels. The washed clothes are draped over shrubs to dry. Cooking is done over open fires and firewood, cut from trees near the village, is in great demand. Kerosene stoves are not used owing to the cost of kerosene which they cannot afford.
The evening meal is usually served before darkness descends on the village, because of a lack of lighting.
Candles and small kerosene lamps cast small glows'of light through the village after dark. The lamps are made from a tin with a hole in the lid through which a wick protrudes. The tin is then filled with kerosene. Lamps similar to these were used by the gold miners in Australia during the gold rush era. Houses generally have two to four rooms. Beds are made from a frame of bamboo with narrow bamboo slats forming the base, which is covered with a woven mat.
Small amounts of meat - goat, pork or poultry - are added to some dishes, but rice is the staple diet. Banana plants, mango trees and coconuts provide additional food for the table. Corn is also an important part of the diet. The children play, simple games using natural materials to make toys. A rough soccer field dominates the central part of the village, soccer being the preferred game for boys.
At one side of the soccer ground we were shown the ruins of a stone two-storeyed house where the "Portuguese King" of the region had once lived. When he showed his displeasure with people in the village they were very frightened.
Walking is the usual mode of travel. Before first light women were on the road to the market at Ossu, about 10 kilometres north of Loi Huno.
Produce such as bundles of firewood
or woven baskets filled with corn were carried on their heads. Apart from our vehicle we only saw a couple
of other vehicles and a flew motorcycles in the village. Much of the clothing worn by the people
of Loi Huno has been donated by international agencies following the withdrawal
of the Indonesian army. The extreme poverty didn't show in the children's
faces, their broad smiles and laughter immediately contagious. These people have a resilience and resourcefulness
which will see them through the rebuilding of their nation, but any help we
can provide will greatly assist them along the road to recovery.