Stirring change: Roya's journey from refugee to head chef

Tonight we celebrate the 50th anniversary of Timorese resettlement in Australia. In 1975, after the Portuguese withdrawal and the Indonesian invasion of East Timor, the first Timorese refugees arrived in Darwin — 272 people, arriving by merchant ship. From those early days, the community has grown and flourished. In 2002, Timor-Leste became an independent nation, and since then many Timorese families have chosen to resettle in our city, bringing with them their culture, hard work, and generosity