People living in Wadas are joining forces to oppose the construction of Bener dam in Bogowonto river. The 160-metre Bener dam is part of the National Strategic Project (PSN) that is expected to be the highest dam in Indonesia. 

However, in order to build the dam, andesite stone is needed. Therefore, the project developer has to mine the stone from the Wadas hill area - the place where the Wadas people live. 

The development project was proposed back in 2013, and the residents of Wadas have been opposing it ever since. However, more often than not, their struggle to keep their dwelling place only leads to attack by authorities. 

According to VICE, the most recent incident occurred on 8 February 2022. Thousands of officers committed violence against the people of Wadas, claiming that they were only doing land measurement activity. The outnumbered residents were shot by tear gas; 67 of them were arrested, including women and minors. The police apologised after the incident went viral.

In solidarity with the Wadas people, a network of 22 artists initiated a coffee exhibition titled “Kepada Tanah: Hidup dan Masa Depan Wadas”. Wadas farmers grow robusta coffee as their intercropping strategy to increase yields other than rice and durians. Robusta coffee is deemed as one of the village’s potentials. 

The artists include Farid Stevy, Gegerboyo, Agugn, Takusno, Chrisna Fernand, Bambang Nurdiansyah, Ruth Marbun, Amenkcoy and Uji Hahan. They design the packaging of the 250-gram Wadas coffee grounds. 

Bambang Nurdiansyah’s artwork symbolises how humans and plants are inseparable, while Chrisna Fernand designs packaging resembling a popular cement brand in Indonesia. The design is pretty much a satire about the development project and the conflict it creates. 

One pack of 250-gram coffee grounds without artists’ artwork is priced at Rp50,000, while those with artworks are priced at Rp400,000. All proceeds from the exhibition and sale will be given back to the Wadas people.

The exhibition was held in six cities, namely, Bali, Batu, Semarang, Bandung, Jakarta  and Yogyakarta on  8-28 February 2022.