An eye-opening experience - An interview with Ella Wilkinson

Ella Wilkinson (seated, front) with TAFE journalism students Will Tremain (standing, left) Mark Cowan and Stephanie Rouxel. Photo by Tracy Sorensen.

By Will Tremain

Ella Wilkinson studies journalism locally here in Bathurst at Charles Sturt University. In December 2011, she had the opportunity to visit a place that has had much media attention over the last decade, East Timor. On a family vacation, Ella would travel across where she spent time with the President, José Ramos-Horta, a close friend of Ella’s mother as a result of her journalistic career.

This holiday however, became more of an eye-opening experience that inspired Ella. She now shares her mother’s passion of caring for the country and people of East Timor. Being exposed to their way of life and their standard of living had an impact that she says inspired her to help.

After visiting one of the schools, she is now considering returning to East Timor to teach English. When asked about the community’s reaction to having their children educated, she told us that it varies from town to town, and even family to family. For some East Timorese, the nearest school is three hours away, and their family mightn’t even own transport, but for others, education is a definite priority. According to Ella, the kids that do attend school are committed and eager to learn, and when opportunities of extra-curricular activities present themselves, they take to it without hesitation

When asked about the state of the country, she admits there is a lot of work to be done; most areas don’t even have power as a result of the Indonesian invasion years ago. Ella also mentions that there was some political unrest, as the first election since 2006 will take place soon this year. The election in 2006 ran with riots and much protest, so the country is waiting in anticipation to see how this year’s election will run.

In any case, Ella seems set on returning to help the East Timorese she became so fond of in her travels.

“That’s where I want to be” - Ella Wilkinson on East Timor

Ella Wilkinson (inset) and a photo she took of Balibo in East Timor.

By Stephanie Rouxel

In December 2011, Ella Wilkinson travelled to East Timor for an inspirational holiday and came back with new and flourishing ideas about her future and what she wanted to do.

Her mum (Bathurst Deputy Mayor Tracey Carpenter) had made the trip to East Timor before, working there with a group on rebuilding parts of the bordering towns after the Indonesian invasion ended. The family travelled to East Timor for a holiday, but her mum was determined to make something out of their stay – hoping to inspire and encourage them to do something like her.

Ella and her family, cousin Henry, and some of his friends, left on the 31 December 2011. They travelled many different places, making the most out of their holiday

“My favourites I think were Dili - because it was so different to anything I had seen before, Balibo - because of its amazing history, and Jaco Island – an uninhabited island that had magnificent beaches!” Ella explains.

While staying in Aileu, they made a few small trips with the President of East Timor, Jose Ramos-Horta. The family witnessed some of his meetings and speeches, as Ella’s mother was really good friends with him.

“That’s how we actually started the whole idea of taking a holiday to East Timor,” says Ella. “There aren’t many people who would be wild enough to take a trip to East Timor for the fun of it. We did it because funnily enough, mum knows the president!”

Next they went through Lacluba, the base for the aid project Friends of Laclubar. Ella visited the school which included more than 300 students in the senior school alone, and then to the convent where she was greeted by the children with traditional song and dance performances

Ella says that her favourite part about staying in East Timor, especially the schools, is meeting new people. “I love that everyone has a story, and they most certainly like to tell their stories if you’ll listen,” she laughs.

During the course of her holiday, Ella was inspired just as her mother had hoped, and she definitely wants to travel back to East Timor again when she gets the chance.

“Once I’ve finished my journalism course at CSU I would love to go straight back to East Timor,” explains Ella. “Because over here, everyone says either you can’t get a job or it will be extremely difficult. But over there, they want to give you a job, they want you to teach them things and to learn from you, and they don’t care about your qualification or what you do. That’s where I want to be”.