Dili, August 28, 2025 (Média Democracia) – The National Chega Center (CNC) conducted a training session at FINANTIL General Secondary School on human rights and gender equality, highlighting the past history of struggles from 1975 to 1999. The training took place at FINANTIL School this Tuesday.
Matias dos Santos, Education and Training Officer at the National Chega Center, said the main objective of the activity was initially focused on Community Conflict Prevention (PKK) and the Secretary of State for Gender Equality.
“You know, conflicts often involve youth, so the main goal of this activity is to raise awareness among young people, especially students, about what constitutes conflict, human rights, and violations of human rights. Therefore, the National Chega Center focuses on past history, connecting it with the human rights violations that occurred in the past,” said Matias dos Santos, Education and Training Officer of CNC.
He emphasized that this training activity is very important to share with students so they understand historical events.
“In the past, young people bravely fought for our independence and the achievement of freedom. But today’s youth live in a digital and technological world, so we think they need to learn about the past to understand what the youth of previous generations did,” added Matias dos Santos.
Aniceto Berelelo, Director of FINANTIL General Secondary School, stated that the training activity is important and expressed gratitude to the Secretary of State for Gender Equality, the Ministry of Interior, and the National Chega Center for bringing the CAVR reports and the country’s history to be shared with all students and teachers in the school.
“This training is very important for students to learn about history and related disciplines, so it can fully enhance students’ knowledge about past events,” said FINANTIL Director Aniceto Berelelo.
The Director noted that the Secretary of State for Gender Equality collaborates with students at FINANTIL School to prevent conflicts. According to the Ministry of Interior, conflicts should be addressed not by fighting but by studying and living together in one land to create peace and stability for the development of Timor-Leste.
“Our national policy says that women and men live with the same rights and duties, so we work together to support each other. At FINANTIL School, girls and boys always respect one another,” said the Director.
He added that by linking the material provided by the Secretary of State for Equality to the students, the training emphasizes the role of girls in society and their contribution to development. The main objective of the training is to improve students’ understanding of historical events.
Student representative Auxiladora Soares expressed pride in participating in the training organized by the National Chega Center, which shared historical events with young people, especially those who fought for the independence of the country.
“I am very proud that today we could participate in this training activity. This is the first time we, as students, could learn more history from the National Chega Center about the struggles of our youth for independence,” said student representative Auxiladora Soares.
She stated that the training is very useful for helping them understand the history of Timor-Leste and to share this knowledge with other classmates who may not yet know much about the country’s history.
The training organized by the National Chega Center raises students’ awareness of human rights, gender equality, and conflict resolution for 80 students at FINANTIL General Secondary School in Aimutin, Dili.
Reporter: Nelfiano
Photo: Nelfiano