5 Reasons why the Malacca Strait is a Strategic Place for Trade

The Malacca Strait which is busy as a strategic place for trade is one of the places that always enters when discussing the history of Indonesia.

Indonesia, which was formerly known as the Archipelago, experienced changes in various civilizations due to trading activities that occurred in the Malacca Strait.

According to Kompas.com, the archipelago used to not have a kingdom, because its people lived in groups as tribes.

Traders from India and China who brought Hinduism and Buddhism led to the emergence of Hindu-Buddhist-style kingdoms.

After that, the arrival of traders from the Middle East who brought Islamic teachings also caused a change of civilization with the emergence of Islamic empires in the archipelago.

Then, why did all traders make the Malacca Strait a strategic place for trade in the Archipelago era?

Characteristics of the Malacca Strait

The following are the characteristics of the Malacca Strait which are summarized from Geography Sciences.com.

- The Malacca Strait is between Peninsular Malaysia, namely around Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand, and Sumatra Island (Aceh, North Sumatra, Riau and the Riau Islands), Indonesia.

- The astronomical location of the Malacca Strait is 95' East Long – 103' East Longitude.

- The Malacca Strait is only about 2.4 km wide.

- The Malacca Strait has one point called the Philip Strait which is the most congested and most important shipping lane in the world.

- The Malacca Strait is 800 kilometers long and 65 kilometers wide in the south and 250 kilometers wide to the north.

Reasons Why the Malacca Strait Becomes a Strategic Place for Trade

1. The Malacca Strait is the main route that connects east and west.

No wonder, because actually the Malacca Strait has been the main route since the early days of human civilization in the archipelago.

2. The location of the Malacca Strait is a profitable maritime Silk Road.

The Silk Road is an ancient international trade route, connecting Chinese civilization in the East with the West.

The name of the silk route refers to the silk trade during the Han Dynasty (206 BC-220 AD) because at that time only China produced silk.

Sea Silk Road or maritime Silk Road that connects mainland China with Western countries.

This maritime Silk Road passes through a number of seas, such as the South China Sea, the Malacca Strait, the Indian Ocean, the Bay of Bengal, the Arabian Sea, to the Red Sea.

3. The Malacca Strait is the shortest route that connects three regions, namely the Archipelago, China and India.

Chinese and Indian traders used the Malacca Straits to trade and socialize.

4. The Malacca Strait is near the equator.

Because it is located near the equator, the Malacca Strait has a tropical climate which makes it easier for traders to mingle without the disturbance of winter which limits shipping.

5. Shipping through the Malacca Straits carries less risk and requires less funds.

Shipping through the Malacca Strait carries less risk than crossing the Indian Ocean east of the archipelago and north of Australia.

In addition, shipping through the Malacca Strait requires less funds than having to go around the archipelago.

So, those are 5 reasons why the Malacca Strait is a bustling place for trade and a strategic place for trading.

Not only in the Archipelago era, the function of the Malacca Strait as a trade route still exists today.

Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore have made the Malacca Strait route for export and import activities.

This is one of the strategies to shorten international trade shipping routes.

Therefore, in the Malacca Strait a port has been built with various modern facilities for this trading purpose.