Toni Somes – It is an arduous task being "mother of the nation" when you are also the mother of two small boys, but Kirsty Sword Gusmao has never been one to sidestep challenges.

But East Timor's first lady did admit to being slightly weary in Charters Towers yesterday.

It could have been the result of a whirlwind fortnight of official engagements across the country with infants in tow or the fact she is pregnant with her third child.

Either way, the Australian-born wife of President Xanana Gusmao of East Timor is not one to shirk her responsibilities, using her speech at a Zonta International dinner in Charters Towers to raise awareness of her adopted homeland.

In an emotive plea she urged Australians to put pressure on the Howard Government not to shift maritime boundaries in the Timor Sea, a move that could cost East Timor billions in oil revenue.

"When you consider Australia is one of the richest countries in the world and East Timor has just been rated the poorest country in East Asia, it's pretty clear which country is in more urgent need of the resources in the Timor Sea," she said.

"East Timor can barely meet the basic needs of its people and we're trying to rebuild a country where 80 per cent of the public and private infrastructure was destroyed in 1999."

With Australian armed forces due home from East Timor this month, she also spoke passionately about the need for an on-going peace-keeping presence in the world's newest nation.

"Peace-keepers have played an integral role in building people's confidence and the region's stability," she said. "Their presence is important psychologically as well as physically and I would like to see their term extended."

Despite Sword Gusmao's ability to articulate the plight of our near neighbours, it was her personal rather than political story that held the audience's interest.

Seemingly very much like the girl next door, she spoke frankly about falling in love with former guerilla commander Xanana Gusmao, and as the president's wife, being bestowed with the "mother of the nation" title.

Their story is straight from a spy novel. She was born in Bendigo, majored in Indonesian at Melbourne University and eventually moved to Jakarta to teach English and work with an Australian aid agency.

In the early 1990s, struck by the injustice of Indonesian occupancy of East Timor, she became involved with the East Timor resistance movement working as an undercover agent.

It was in this role that in a dank Indonesian prison she met the movement's charismatic leader, Xanana Gusmao.

Though they are 20 years apart in age, the couple were drawn to each other and an unorthodox courtship by correspondence ensued. They married after Xanana's release in 2000.

Today they have two children, Alexandre, 4, and Kay Olok, 2, and are expecting their third in November.

But Mrs Gusmao confesses the transition from English teacher and aid worker to first lady has not been easy.

"Nothing prepares you for this role," she said. "If someone had told me 20 years ago that one day I would be married to the president of East Timor I would never have believed them.

"I grew up wanting to be a ballet dancer or a journalist. But I guess in my heart I always sensed my horizons extended beyond Australia."

Now she is married to her adopted country's national hero, a man dubbed the Nelson Mandela of East Asia, and lives in "a very modest" presidential home in the hills above Dili.

"When Xanana was first made president, I had this very well intentioned adviser to first ladies the world over call on me.

"She said the first thing I needed was a private secretary and a marquee for any events I hosted. At that moment I knew she had no idea what my situation was.

"East Timor is the poorest country in the region and as first lady there is absolutely no allowance for me in government budgets."

Instead she relies on sponsorship and funds raised through the Alola Foundation she created to improve the lives of women and children in her new homeland.

Despite the difficult financial situation – "it is very frustrating to be so dependent" – her public profile continues to rise. These days she travels extensively, taking her two young sons and their nanny with her.

"It is very important to me that my children are with me. I don't like to be away from them for any length of time," Sword Gusmao said.

It is challenging to be a good mother when, like working women everywhere, I have so many other roles."

But one gets the distinct impression her roles as mother and mother of the nation have top priority.