Alias Ruby Blade – extended trailer

Check out this extended trailer for Alias Ruby Blade.

Pat Walsh, fighter for truth and justice

Congratulations to Pat Walsh, recipient of the Order of Australia for his work with the historic Truth and Reconciliation Commission which investigated the crimes that had been committed in Timor-Leste and for his ongoing commitment to the struggle.

Pat is a central character in Alias Ruby Blade having been a mentor to Kirsty in her early years in Melbourne while she was working at the magazine Inside Indonesia and the Australian Council for Oversees Aid.

After the historic referendum and the ensuing chaos, Pat became the senior advisor to CAVR and was instrumental in the publication of CHEGA!, the truth seeking report of over 2500 pages which chronicles the human rights violations committed during the occupation of Timor-Leste.

Read more about CAVR and the CHEGA! report here.

A luta continua!

Tanya and Alex with Pat Walsh, Melbourne

José Ramos-Horta: rebel, diplomat, president

One of the main characters in Alias Ruby Blade is José Ramos-Horta, currently President of Timor-Leste, Ramos-Horta was exiled from his country for over twenty years after the Indonesian invasion. During that time he worked tirelessly to continue to raise awareness of the brutal occupation of his country and agitate for a referendum for Independence. In 1996 Ramos-Horta was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize along with Bishop Carlos Ximenes Belo for “for their work towards a just and peaceful solution to the conflict in East Timor”

In the office of the President, 2010

We first met José while working for the United Nations Mission in Support of East Timor as a documentary unit in 2005 and were privileged to have the opportunity to interview him for the first time then. His 1987 book “Funu (War): the Unfinished Saga of East Timor” was one of the inspirations for Alias Ruby Blade and helped us to formulate the idea of using the personal stories of the key players in the resistance struggle to shape a narrative.

Tanya Ager Meillier, José Ramos-Horta, Alex Meillier, 2005

José Ramos-Horta appears in a surprisingly candid two-part interview in Alias Ruby Blade. Check out his website here and follow him on Facebook.

Naldo Rei, freedom fighter, author

In the making of Alias Ruby Blade we were privileged to have the opportunity to interview Naldo Rei, author of Resistance: A Childhood Fighting for East Timor. Naldo’s story of resistance is emblematic of the larger struggle and the importance of political action amongst the younger generation of Timorese that had little memory of the Portuguese era and were prepared to give their lives for the freedom of East Timor. His incredible story intersects with Kirsty as Ruby Blade when he was sent to Jakarta to participate in the new war to win the hearts and minds of the Indonesian people and bring the cause of justice for East Timor in to the forefront of public discourse around the world through non-violent action.

These dramatic photographs depict Naldo leading a protest march in Sydney in 1999 calling for international peacekeepers to intervene during the height of the militia violence perpetrated against the Timorese people in retaliation for their vote for independence. Ultimately, through their actions and other brave individual acts the peacekeepers were sent in and the militias disarmed, marking the beginning of the long process of rebuilding and reconciliation that continues today.

Naldo Rei, Sydney 1999

Protesters, Sydney, 1999

Naldo Rei leads the marchers in front of the FRETILIN flag

The crowd is a diverse group of Timorese expatriots and ordinary Australian citizens.

Protesters storm the airport

Naldo leads the protesters inside the airport

Special thanks to photographer Anne Maregiano for providing us with these incredible images.

Alola Foundation named co-recipient of the 2011 POSCO TJ Park Community Development Prize

“for contributing to women`s protection and feminist movements contributed to maternal and child health through various activities in East Timor such as breastfeeding campaigns, birth supplies support, maternity care before and after birth, parenting advise, and others.”

Read the press release here

From the Korea Times

Implementation of Mother Tongue Educational Plan

Congratulations to Kirsty on the implementation of the mother tongue educational plan in Timor-Leste. Read more about it here.

Kirsty Sword Gusmao, third from left

Last November, our cameras followed Kirsty to Bangkok, Thailand where she was a featured speaker in an educational conference sponsored by UNICEF. The implementation of mother tongue based education amongst the attendees from all around the world was a topic of passionate discussions and debate.

We learned that Timor-Leste is one of the most linguistically diverse countries in the world, despite having a population of only just over one million people. The Timorese are naturally gifted with languages. In Dili, it is quite common for average Timorese to easily fluctuate between speaking Tetum, Bahasa Indonesian, English and Portuguese.

Kirsty fields a question from the audience

Most Timorese speak Tetum, the most common language in Timor-Leste, but many also speak their own native language at home which can be specific to their region or village. Children who speak a mother tongue at home and then go to school where the teachers are speaking Portuguese are at a disadvantage and become discouraged with school. By learning to read and write first in their own language it enhances their ability to learn and makes it easier to learn other languages. In addition, in a place like Timor-Leste, still scarred from generations of conflict, learning the mother tongue fosters unity and pride in their national identity.

Cooperation with the United Nations Creative Community Outreach Initiative

Tanya and Kirsty aboard a UN flight from Dili to Maliana. By road the journey takes several hours over mountainous terrain. By helicopter, 30 minutes.

Last summer we pitched our film to the UN Creative Community Outreach Initiative and they have been instrumental in helping us to identify and access critical archival material as well as putting us in touch with the UN Mission of Support in East Timor. The UN in Timor provided us with logistical support including a helicopter ride to Maliana where we were able to film a reception for the Prime Minister.

Shane Sigler takes a shot through the porthole

 

Alex has been invited to join a panel next Thursday, February 17th to discuss the cooperation with UN Creative Community Outreach Initiative and Alias Ruby Blade.

Read more about the event here.