Our problems and our suffering in this world are because men and women do wrong. The Lord God has created our country and the men and women in it. Men and women are always suffering, and God has created this suffering for us. Whatever problems men, women and little children have, they are those that God sends them. In any human life, there are many sufferings which God sends us. My daughter's name is Cosmenia Dias Quintas and she has lived under violence because, as everyone knows, both men and women are sinners. I was the victim of violence because of my own desire and because it was God's wish. Each one of us who were victims in this way, are now alone and, as you see, I am raising my child without a husband. I accept this condition which God has sent to me. I work hard trying to create a good environment to sustain my child and myself.

From 1975 right up until now, I have been fighting both for the freedom of the people of Timor and also for East Timorese women's liberation, because the women of Timor Lorosa´e must live independently within Timorese society. Most of our friends were fighting for independence and trying to help in any way that was required. So now, we ask our Timorese men to support us, and to contribute to our liberation so that we can work together to build up our country.

We Timorese have reached our objective, that is, freedom for our nation. Women now must struggle to achieve our own emancipation and freedom, because right now we have a strong desire and hope to be free ourselves. It is my view that, in the future, the development of civil society will depend on the young people. We women have already done what we could, we involved ourselves in the struggle, and in the fighting, we forced ourselves to work hard and to contribute to the best of our ability. We hope that our contribution has been an inspiration to the new generation, the young men and women, so that they feel compelled to make their own contribution to the development of their nation. We have shown them an example of how to give support to our country.

We women, we already know a little bit about democracy, because the women of Timor Lorosa´e have the same rights in society as the men do, although women must understand their own tasks and responsibilities as women. As women, we also have to identify our character as Catholic citizens.

I ask all the women of Timor Lorosa´e to be firmly united. It is only through this that we can free ourselves. If we are divided as we were before, we will not find our liberation and emancipation. So we must have reconciliation with one another and unity throughout.

If you can understand how we are suffering and the problems that we have now, as a result of the sexual violence, I would be very grateful if you could lobby for us and find us some assistance. We are in great need of it. If someone has the goodwill to help us, I will give thanks.

1 September, 2001

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