How the Suez Canal changed the world - Lucia Carminati

Translator: Rizka Anjani Reviewer: Reno Kanti Riananda

In March 2021, fierce winds blew a container ship off course.

Pada bulan Maret 2021, kapal kontainer keluar jalur karena angin kencang.

In most places, this would have caused a minor incident.

Di tempat lain, hal ini akan menimbulkan insiden kecil.

But in the Suez Canal, it was a global crisis.

Namun, di Terusan Suez, ini menjadi krisis global.

This vessel wasn’t just blocking other ships—

Kapal ini tidak hanya menghalangi kapal lainnyaㅡ

It was obstructing the flow of international trade

tetapi juga menghambat jalur perdagangan internasional

through one of the world’s most important waterways.

di salah satu jalur perairan paling penting di dunia.

The site of the Suez Canal has been of interest to rulers of this region

Lokasi Terusan Suez sudah menarik para penguasa daerah ini

as far back as the second millennium BCE.

sejak milenium kedua SM.

To move goods between Asia and the Mediterranean basin,

Untuk memindahkan barang antara Asia dengan Pesisir Laut Tengah,

traders had to traverse the narrow isthmus separating the Red Sea and the Nile,

pedagang harus melintasi tanah genting sempit

yang memisahkan Laut Merah dan Sungai Nil,

journeying in camel-bound caravans through the unforgiving desert.

bepergian dengan rombongan unta melalui kondisi gurun yang kejam.

A maritime passage between the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea

Jalur laut antara Samudra Hindia dan Laut Mediterania

would bypass this trip altogether.

dapat memangkas rute perjalanan ini.

And throughout the 16th century,

Dan selama abad ke-16,

multiple powers attempted to construct such a canal.

banyak penguasa yang mencoba membangun terusan tersebut.

But their plans were obstructed by cost, political strife,

Namun, rencana mereka terhalang biaya, perselisihan politik,

and the ever-shifting sands.

dan pasir yang selalu berubah-ubah.

In 1798, interest in building a canal was rekindled,

Tahun 1798, minat pembangunan sebuah kanal muncul kembali,

this time attracting attention from across Europe.

kali ini menarik perhatian dari seluruh Eropa.

Over the following decades, individuals from Austria, Italy, Britain, and France

Selama berabad-abad, orang dari Austria, Italia, Inggris, dan Prancis

pitched their plans to Egypt’s rulers.

mengajukan rencana mereka pada para pemimpin Mesir.

At the time, Egypt was a territory of the Ottoman Empire,

Saat itu, Mesir adalah sebuah wilayah Kekaisaran Ottoman,

which was resistant to these proposals.

yang menentang tawaran-tawaran tersebut.

But Egypt's political and economic autonomy was gradually increasing,

Namun, kemandirian politik dan ekonomi Mesir perlahan meningkat,

and its government was eager to pursue the project.

dan pemerintahnya sangat ingin mewujudkan proyek tersebut.

When Sa’id Pasha came into power in 1854, he approved a plan

Saat Sa’id Pasha naik takhta tahun 1854,

dia menyetujui rencana diplomat Prancis yang giat dan manipulatif

from the enterprising and manipulative French diplomat Ferdinand de Lesseps.

bernama Ferdinand de Lesseps.

Signed in 1854 and 1856, a pair of concessions gave de Lesseps

Ditandatangani pada 1854 dan 1856,

seperangkat konsesi memberi de Lesseps

authority to establish the Suez Canal Company

kuasa untuk mendirikan Perusahaan Terusan Suez

and finance it by selling shares to “capitalists of all nations.”

dan membiayainya dengan menjual saham

pada “para kapitalis seluruh dunia.”

The contracts between Sa’id Pasha and the Canal Company

Kontrak antara Sa’id Pasha dan Perusahaan Kanal

also promised a workforce of hundreds of thousands of Egyptian workers.

juga menjanjikan lapangan kerja bagi ratusan ribu tenaga kerja Mesir.

Beginning in 1862, about 20,000 laborers were forcibly recruited every month,

Dimulai tahun 1862, sekitar 20.000 pekerja direkrut paksa setiap bulan,

digging the canal in harsh desert conditions

menggali kanal di kondisi gurun yang sulit

without easy access to food or water.

tanpa kemudahan akses makanan maupun air minum.

Diseases like cholera ran rampant and workers toiled under the threat of whips.

Penyakit seperti kolera merajalela

dan para pekerja bekerja di bawah ancaman cambuk.

The estimates of those who died during construction range into the thousands.

Korban jiwa selama pembangunan diperkirakan mencapai ribuan orang.

In 1864, the new Egyptian ruler, Isma’il Pasha,

Tahun 1864, penguasa Mesir yang baru, Isma’il Pasha,

put an end to the coerced Egyptian labor,

menghentikan kerja paksa bagi rakyat Mesir,

but he still pressed forward with construction.

tetapi meneruskan pembangunannya.

Foreign workers from all over Europe and the Middle East

Pekerja asing dari seluruh Eropa dan Timur Tengah

labored alongside dredgers and bucket excavators

bekerja bersama kapal keruk dan ekskavator

to remove 74 million cubic meters of dirt.

untuk memindahkan 74 juta meter kubik tanah.

This massive population of workers required infrastructure

Adanya populasi besar pekerja membutuhkan infrastruktur

to deliver drinking water and other supplies,

untuk mengirim air minum dan kebutuhan lainnya,

giving rise to a flourishing economy of restaurants, brothels, and smuggled goods.

mendorong perkembangan ekonomi mulai dari restoran,

rumah bordil, dan barang selundupan.

Amidst the bustle were born three new cities with multi-ethnic populations:

Di tengah hiruk pikuk tersebut, lahirlah tiga kota baru berpopulasi multi-etnis:

Port Said on the northern Mediterranean shore,

Pelabuhan Said di utara pantai Mediterania,

Ismailia on the canal's middle tract,

Ismailia di saluran tengah kanal,

and Port Tewfiq, at the southern edge of the canal.

dan Pelabuhan Tawfiq, di tepi selatan kanal.

The construction site bypassed the Nile and ran directly from Port Said to Suez.

Lokasi konstruksi melewati Sungai Nil

dan mengarah langsung dari Pelabuhan Said ke Suez.

And after years of work, the streams of the two seas finally began merging

Dan setelah beberapa tahun, aliran kedua laut akhirnya mulai menyatu

in the mid-1860s.

di pertengahan 1860-an.

The finished canal was 164 kilometers long,

Kanal ini memiliki panjang 164 kilometer,

with a width of 56 meters at the surface,

dengan lebar 56 meter di permukaan,

and it was officially inaugurated on November 17th, 1869.

dan diresmikan pada 17 November 1869.

While it struggled financially during its first few years,

Meskipun ada kesulitan finansial di awal pembangunan,

the canal ended up dramatically accelerating global trade.

kanal ini mempercepat terjadinya perdagangan global secara dramatis.

It also facilitated the migration of numerous marine species,

Kanal ini juga memfasilitasi migrasi beragam spesies laut,

dramatically changing local ecosystems and cuisine.

mengubah ekosistem dan kuliner lokal secara dramatis.

Over the decades, traffic through the canal grew.

Selama beberapa dekade, lalu lintas kanal berkembang.

But in 1875,

Namun pada tahun 1875,

financial issues forced Egypt to sell much of its stock in the Canal Company,

isu finansial memaksa Mesir menjual sebagian besar saham di Perusahaan Kanal,

allowing Britain to take over.

menyebabkan Inggris mengambil alih.

It was only in 1956 that control of the canal fully reverted to Egypt

Barulah tahun 1956 kontrol kanal kembali sepenuhnya ke Mesir

when it was nationalized by President Gamal Abdel Nasser.

saat Presiden Gamal Abdel Nasser melakukan nasionalisasi.

This move sparked a military standoff

Langkah ini memicu kebuntuan militer

between Egypt and Britain, France, and Israel.

antara Mesir dengan Inggris, Prancis, dan Israel.

But once resolved,

Setelah hal ini teratasi,

it transformed the canal into a major source of Egypt's national revenue

kanal berubah menjadi sumber utama penghasilan nasional Mesir

and helped redeem the canal's imperialist legacy.

dan membantu menebus warisan imperialis kanal tersebut.

Today, nearly 30% of all global ship traffic passes through the Suez Canal,

Kini, hampir 30% dari seluruh lalu lintas kapal global

melewati Terusan Suez,

totaling over 20,000 ships in 2021.

dengan total lebih dari 20.000 kapal pada tahun 2021.

However, the incident of the Ever Given is a stark reminder

Namun, insiden Kapal Ever Given adalah sebuah pengingat nyata

of just how fragile our manmade systems can be.

betapa rapuhnya sistem buatan manusia.