Dili – (08th of March 2024), the Public Institute of Centro Nacional Chega! (CNC I.P), the Division of Historical Research and Archives (DPAI) provided training to 4 Municipal Memorial Museum Managers consisting of 8 managers: Viqueque 2, Aileu 2, Covalima 2, and Bobonaro 2.
The training program on Museum Management took five days from March 04th- 08th, 2024. It consisted of sessions on various topics, including Historical Memory Documentation, presented by the Division Director of Historical Research and Archives (DPAI), Yazalde Manaka Savio, which covered the methodology for documenting historical memory. A session on Historical Documents Preservation, presented by the Centro Chega! Archivist Mario Menezes focused on the collections and preservations of historical documents such as papers, audio, video, photography, and historical objects and the session on Tour Guide, presented by the Official of Education and Training, Flamina Belo, which covered customer service in museums.
The main goal of the training was to develop an understanding of the collection and preservation of historical documents related to human rights violations between 1974-1999 of the managers. The history information collected is available to the public, particularly the Municipal communities. The media officer of Centro Nacional Chega!I.P held discussions with four Municipal Memorial Museum Managers to gather their feedback and recommendations on the training provided
Jebedeu Colibere Soares, Manager of the Aileu Municipal Memorial Museum, expressed his pride in the museum management training sessions provided to them. The museum aims to be accessible to societies, researchers, the public, and within the municipality to provide a comprehensive understanding of its history.
The Aileu Municipal Memorial Museum was established two years ago, On 15 August 2022. As part of this, we conducted the induction program, and students, community members, and municipal authorities visited the museum and historical sites. We have collected, transcribed, and preserved the personal stories, totaling between 15-16.
The Aileu Municipal Memorial Museum plays a vital role in preserving history for future generations and helping them understand past events within the context of independence. It also aims to strengthen their spirit of nationalism and patriotism.
Maria Carvalho Amaral, the manager of Covalima Municipal Memorial Museum, “I am proud of the progress in learning about a new system and application. These tools are not yet in use at the museum, but the training we received has given us a better understanding of ourselves and our potential benefits for future progress. As non-researchers and non-museum specialists, the team came up with our own experiences, and this training helped us learn even more. This training is useful for the team as we strive to improve our museum”.
The Covalima Municipal Memorial Museum was established on 7 December 2021. It currently houses 52 historical objects, including army belts, swords, photographs, and the clandestine former structure of the 12 October subregion. Since its inception, many people from Covalima communities, students, priests, nuns, and some foreigners who previously worked in Timor-Leste visited the museum.
Marciana Goveia Leite, the manager of Bobonaro Municipal Memorial Museum, “I express my gratitude towards Centro Nacional Chega!I.P for providing training to 4 Municipal Museum Managers. I am proud that the five-day training has given us a positive opportunity to enhance our skills and abilities”.
During the 5-day training, we learned how effectively to preserve, facilitate, and input data. We also gained valuable knowledge about how to interview and write compelling narratives to help us classify and preserve the collected documents from the survivors.
The Bobonaro Municipal Memorial Museum was founded on November 28, 2023. During its establishment, the museum staff worked closely with local authorities, especially the Village Heads and School Directors. They sent invitation letters to schools to invite students to visit the museum.
The establishment of this museum is as important. During its launch, the survivors said, a museum is what they were waiting for. It is a place for them to count and preserve the history they faced in the past. Communities and students can learn, understand, and acknowledge the history within the museum. It has provided them to learn history closely, and they do not need to come to Dili. The museum is a room where they can learn the history of the past belong Bobonaro as the independence of TL uneasy-won – it was a long process.
The Viqueque Memorial Museum, Uvaldo Silvino das Dores, “Being a manager of Viqueque Museum, I am pleased as we have attended the training for five days. The lessons we gained are to implement in the field. It can deepen our experiences in data collection of the field history. Through this training, my future expectation is that the museum will be under a good classification and system, and we will apply what we have learned”.
The Viquque Municipal Memorial Museum was established on December 28th, 2021, in Kararas village. During its establishment, we coordinated with the survivors and veterans in taking their stories on the Raising of Kararas in 1983. We have collected and preserved more than 30 stories from the survivors and the veterans.
The collected objects preserved in the museum are the handled transceivers, army belts, Spoons, army backpacks, army jeans, and other text documents sent to one another between the clandestine and the commander. There is also the original photo documentation preserved. During its existence, the communities and the students came to visit the museum. So, its establishment is significant for the communities to understand the histories that belong to them.
We recommend that Centro Chega! Keep providing training to the Municipal Managers to enhance our capacity-building and how to take the history from the survivors and the veterans.
CNC-Media