“Papua is indeed the best producer of arabica coffee,” Hari Suroto, a researcher at the Papua Archeology Center, told tempo.co. According to Hari, Papuans cultivate coffee deep in the Papua mountains, at 1500 or 2000 meters above sea level.

Kiwirok coffee is cultivated by the Ngalum tribe in the province’s Bintang Mountains. The district is blessed with hilly terrain and chilly temperatures of around 18 to 23 degrees Celsius, benefiting the plantation with a less sunny, misty environment. Such an environment is ideal for coffee plants, as the coffee cherries take more time to ripen in the trees.

Indonesia started the 20^th PON in Jayapura city as well as the Mimika and Merauke regions of Papua after a year’s delay due to the pandemic. The games are being hosted under heavy security over virus concerns, as well as the boiling tensions after a string of clashes between authorities and Papuan rebels in Papua and West Papua in the weeks leading up to the games. Indonesia is also currently under international scrutiny on how the government treats its human rights activists in Papua.

The Bintang Mountains, where Kiwirok coffee is cultivated, garnered attention after a separatist armed group reportedly torched several public facilities, including health centers and homes in the district on the morning of Sept. 13, only a few weeks before the start of the games. The separatists were reported to have assaulted and tortured several health workers of Kiwirok Community Health Center (Puskesmas), killing one. An army member, who was involved in a gunfight against the armed group, also sustained a minor injury.

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