20 December 2024
A group of women from the Timor Leste Defence Force (F-FDTL) were shown what their counterparts in the ADF can do, during a visit to Darwin from December 2-6.
The 10 women were paired with female soldiers from 1st Brigade and taken through combat first aid, combatives and shooting, along with a tour of some local units as part of a gender development program between the ADF and the F-FDTL.
They also spent a day with Indigenous people posted to North-West Mobile Force (NORFORCE).
F-FTDL Contingent Commander Lieutenant Julia da Costa said a highlight was meeting Commanding Officer 1st Combat Service Support Battalion Lieutenant Colonel Danielle Huggins.
“When she was a lieutenant, she worked very closely with her soldiers so when she was promoted, she already knew the people well,” Lieutenant da Costa said.
“That made being a leader easier. It’s inspiring me to apply that.”
Women in the F-FDTL have recently been promoted to the equivalent Army rank of captain, but Lieutenant da Costa said she would like to command a unit one day.
This is the program’s second year and included tours of HMAS Coonawarra and RAAF Base Darwin, before a week in Canberra where the Timorese met senior women leaders in the Department of Defence and completed an introductory Women Peace and Security course.
'I think it inspires us and shows us how the F-FDTL (Timor-Leste Armed Forces) can grow in the future and what we can be capable of.'
Jemma Malcolm, First Secretary Defence at the Australian embassy in Timor-Leste, said the program aimed to showcase what Defence women can do.
“In the F-FDTL, women are not yet reaching senior ranks, so for this group, the opportunity to meet women of very senior ranks shows them that it is possible,” she said.
This year, the group were represented by all three services, and included administrative roles, a mechanic and a special forces soldier.
The women conducted shooting exercises at the WTSS ahead of a live-fire shoot with M4 carbines.
They were also shown the 1st Brigade’s humanitarian support capabilities, including water purification units that mirror the capabilities in Timor-Leste.
The group also visited RAAF Base Darwin’s air traffic control and toured ADV Cape Woolamai, which exposed the group to ADF’s broader capabilities in Darwin and highlighted the many links between the ADF and F-FDTL.
Lieutenant da Costa said the biggest benefit of the program was meeting high-ranking women.
“I think it inspires us and shows us how the F-FDTL can grow in the future and what we can be capable of,” she said.
The program has proved so popular that other countries have asked to be involved, according to Ms Malcolm.
She said it fostered the small, people-to-people links needed between countries.
“We learned from last year that the relationship continues and the women are still in contact with each other. It’s a really beautiful way to build our friendship,” Ms Malcolm said.
