Former terrorist convict Umar Patek introduced his new business, Ramu Kopi, hoping that his coffee brand will become widely known and well-received by the public.
Patek’s Ramu Kopi offers several variants, including Signature, Ijen Arabica, Robusta, and Spices, with the most distinctive being the spiced coffee. The name Ramu Kopi was chosen by Umar as it comes from the arrangement of his own name when reversed or read from the back.
Patek revealed that the coffee recipe was also passed down from his mother. Through his coffee concoctions, he hopes to embark on a new path in life within the community.
“This is not just coffee. This is about change, choosing a new life,“ he told the press on Wednesday, the 4th of June.
Patek recalled that the idea of establishing a coffee business came when Drg. David Andreasmito, the owner of Hedon Estate, approached him after his release from Porong Prison in December 2022.
“[When we met] he always offered to deposit money [for me]. I refused, I didn’t want to. This [money] was not what I needed; work was what I needed. Finally, when he came to my house and I offered him coffee, he loved it,” he explained.
After going through various trials and processes, he officially introduced Ramu Kopi to the public at a launch event held at Hedon Estate, Surabaya, on Tuesday (the 3rd of June). Currently, Ramu Kopi is available at Hedon Estate cafés in Surabaya and Banyuwangi.
“I have a feeling he could be a good person,” Andreasmito added. “He loved me first. He knew I was non-Muslim, but he wanted to be close to me. Not because of money — he was close to me because he could joke around when he was with me. That made me happy.”
Patek, a member of the al-Qaeda-linked Jemaah Islamiyah group, was jailed for 20 years in 2012 after being found guilty of making bombs that ripped through two Bali nightclubs in 2002, killing 202 people, including 88 Australians and 38 Indonesians. He was released on parole in 2022 and has apologised to the victims. Since his release, Indonesian authorities have highlighted Patek as an example of the country’s deradicalisation efforts aimed at countering a resurgence in Islamic militancy.