He escaped to Australia in 1995 as one of 18 Timorese refugees who fled in a leaky boat and was detained at the Curtin Immigration Detention Centre in Derby, W.A. He later worked in the shipyards in Western Australia.
However, due to his acerbic style, he was eventually transferred to the Army headquarters in the capital Dili by Brigadier-General Taur Matan Ruak, the commander of the FDTL [REF].