Karimata Islands

The Karimata Islands stood within the maritime approaches to western Borneo. Their eighteenth-century history included the movement of displaced political followers as well as ordinary navigation and trade. In 1765 Raja Musa, a son of a deposed ruler of Siak, settled there with followers after conflicts in his homeland. He lived at Kampong Srunai on Karimata Besar, while a commander established Kampong Siak on Serutu.

These settlements exacted tolls from passing vessels under threat, demonstrating how control of an island base could turn maritime movement into revenue. Other residents had different occupations. Chinese families at Kampong Palembang on Karimata Besar engaged in fishing and blacksmithing. In 1808 they were moved to the Kalimantan coast for reasons that remain uncertain, and Orang Laut under Badin Galang occupied the vacated settlement. The island waters therefore belonged to a changing social and political landscape in which migration, skilled work, coercive toll collection and the occupation of coastal villages were closely connected.