NOTE: This is part 2 about Semidang Bukit Kabu Hunting Forest. The Feb 4 post is about the village. This post is about the people who are illegally living in the conservation forest. My role is to determine why the people are there, what they believe is the government’s role in the forest, how they live with the Sumatran tiger, and what changes (if any) they have seen in the weather.

People live in the forest because they cannot find another place to farm. According to them, they are farmers without farmland. The government sees the people as squatters on conservation land. About 4-5 years ago, the Forest Rangers went into the forest, made the people leave, and burned down their houses. Now, the Rangers visit the communities to evaluate and take photographs of where people are living and the forest they are destroying. The government stopped the house burning because a few months later the people came back. They use slash and burn farming techniques.

There are 3 types of squatter. The first owns a house outside the forest, but lives in the forest to farm. They live there all the time and visit their homes a few times a year. The second is a share cropper meaning they are farming for another person and they get half the money or food. The third lives in the forest full-time and does not have another house. They are living in the forest because they have no where else to go. They do not have a lot but the men smoke and most families have a cell phone.

No matter the type of squatter, they live without running water and electricity. Their clothes are second hand. They bathe in the river and go to the bathroom in the woods–no toilets. Which means boiling their drinking water. They make things last as long as possible. This guy cut up his shoes so he could continue to wear them. They remind me of the old clam shell Adidas (Stan Smith would be proud).

The people cannot sell the land because it belongs to the government, but they can sell the plants. You can purchase a farm in the forest, but you are ONLY getting the plants not the land. Farmers grow coffee, palms, and some vegetables. They do not grow palm oil palms–the rangers closely monitor their crops. Additionally, the farmers harvest cloves and pepper (like the kind you use on your food). They take these to the local market and trade for what they need. Some money may be exchanged, but they mostly trade.

CLOVES: I had no idea where cloves came from. I guess I thought they grew on small plants. They pick the cloves from a tree and dry them. I am standing next to a clove tree. The photographs show the process of drying.

COFFEE: This ain’t Starbucks!! This year the coffee did not do well due to too much rain. The farmers harvested what they could, but because the coffee was not good they mixed it together. Normally, they would pick the red beans. The red beans are better and worth more. This year the farmers harvested everything at once.

Once harvested, they dry the beans for about 5 weeks. When the coffee is in the drying phase, they spread it out on the ground during the day and cover it at night. Even the chickens and dogs love hanging out in the coffee. Yes. I saw a chicken poo in the coffee! Think about that when you are having your next cup of Jo!!! They bag the coffee and carry the bags over the mountain by motorbike to the local market. Some is kept for personal use. For 6-8 weeks of work, they make approximately $50 US unless they trade it for things they need. The photographs show the process from beginning to end. The video shows the process of spreading the coffee each morning.

KOPI LUWAK: THE MOST EXPENSIVE COFFEE IN THE WORLD!! If you love coffee, please read! Coffee is not a bean it is the pit of a fruit. The most expensive coffee in the world is Kopi Luwak, which can cost up to $150 US for a 1/2 pound (I found it on Ebay for $100/lb. Not sure I would trust that it is real). The coffee is expensive because it is rare. You will NOT find this at Starbucks. A cup of this coffee will cost you about $35-$150 a cup. The palm civet (really cute animal) eats the coffee beans and poops them out. That poop coffee is harvested by Indonesians and sold as the BEST coffee in the world. Now the chickens and dogs pooping and rolling around in the coffee does not seem so bad!! If you are interested in a quick lesson/visual take a look at this website: What is Kopi Luwak? A farmer gave me about 1/2 lb of the civet coffee. I do not drink coffee so I gave it to Regen the Ranger who took me out to the forest. This is what the most expensive coffee in the world looks like after it comes out of the palm civet–yep that is poop on the beans.

Nothing is wasted. When the outside of the coffee is removed, they dry it and use it as fertilizer.