Since gaining a prestigious Australian Award Scholarship and graduating with a Bachelor of Humanitarian and Community Studies from CDU in 2016, Guilhermina has established herself as a leading researcher in the field of women’s rights in Timor-Leste. When she returned to Timor-Leste in 2016 she began a collaboration with La Trobe University in Melbourne and the National University in Timor-Leste, managing a large program of research to explore how the health sector can better support survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault.
Violence against women is a pervasive issue in Timor-Leste, where the history of war and conflict combine with high rates of gender inequality and patriarchal norms to produce some of the highest rates of violence against women in the world. National surveys have shown 35-47% of women have experience physical or sexual violence from their partner in the past 12 months, which is 10-20 times higher than rates in Australia.
Over the past five years Guilhermina has conducted primary research with women survivors of violence, developed educational resources to share their experiences and aspirations, and has collaborated to develop and evaluate a University curriculum that will support nurses, midwives and medical doctors to provide compassionate support and safety for people affected by trauma. She is now working with the United Nations (UN) Population Fund to adapt this work as a national in-service curriculum and is mentoring trainers within government institutions to build the capacity of practising health workers to respond to gender-based violence across the country.
In the short period between graduating from CDU, Guilhermina has made a significant contribution to the international literature on how to effectively support survivors of violence, has spoken out in the media and has presented at high profile international conferences. She is now co-authoring one the first University-level textbooks to be published in the national language Tetum. Guilhermina is a trailblazer for women’s rights in Timor-Leste and continually pushes for better equality and voice for vulnerable people. In addition to her academic and policy contribution, Guilhermina has been at the forefront of challenging harmful gender norms and injustice in her community, and has worked closely with NGOs and women affected by violence to empower them with information and pathways to enhance their rights.