The Pulau Pisang Lighthouse ( ms, Rumah Api Pulau Pisang) is a

lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid, for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Lighthouses mar ...

located on the highest point of Pulau Pisang, an island in the

Strait of Malacca The Strait of Malacca is a narrow stretch of water, 500 mi (800 km) long and from 40 to 155 mi (65–250 km) wide, between the Malay Peninsula (Peninsular Malaysia) to the northeast and the Indonesian island of Sumatra to the southwest, connec ...

15 kilometres from

Pontian Kechil Pontian Kechil ( Jawi: ڤونتين كچيل) also known as Pontian Town (Malay: ''Bandar Pontian'') is a town and the administrative centre of Pontian District, Johor, Malaysia. History The town was originally a fishing village. Now it has grown ...

Johor Johor (; ), also spelled as Johore, is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia in the south of the Malay Peninsula. Johor has land borders with the Malaysian states of Pahang to the north and Malacca and Negeri Sembilan ...

, Malaysia. Built in 1914, the lighthouse was constructed as a white 16 metre (52 feet) high circular cast iron tower with one support structure and a single storey keeper's house at the base. As of 2008, its functions remains as an aid for maritime navigation into the western entrance of the

Singapore Strait The Singapore Strait is a , strait between the Strait of Malacca in the west and the South China Sea in the east. Singapore is on the north of the channel, and the Indonesian Riau Islands are on the south. The two countries share a maritime ...

. Due to its isolated location, the lighthouse is only reachable via boat and an access road.

History

While the island where the lighthouse belongs to Johor, the lighthouse is operated by the

Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) is a statutory board under the Ministry of Transport of the Government of Singapore. History The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) was established on 2 February 1996 by the MPA A ...

(MPA). This is due to an agreement signed in 1900 between

Sultan Ibrahim of Johor Sultan Sir Ibrahim Al-Masyhur Ibni Almarhum Sultan Abu Bakar Al-Khalil Ibrahim Shah (17 September 1873 – 8 May 1959) was a Malaysian sultan and the 22nd Sultan of Johor and the 2nd Sultan of modern Johor. He was considered to be "fabulously ...

and Sir James Alexander Sweethenham,

Governor of the Straits Settlements The governor of the Straits Settlements was appointed by the British East India Company until 1867, when the Straits Settlements became a Crown colony. Thereafter the governor was appointed by the Colonial Office. The position existed from 1826 ...

, stating that the island belonged to Johor, while the British government of Singapore (at the time part of the

Straits Settlements The Straits Settlements were a group of British territories located in Southeast Asia. Headquartered in Singapore for more than a century, it was originally established in 1826 as part of the territories controlled by the British East India Comp ...

) had the rights to the plot of land on which the lighthouse stands and the roadway leading to it. When Singapore separated from Malaysia in 1965, Malaysia took over the island while management of the lighthouse remains with Singapore. Since 1974, instructions to the lighthouse keeper is that no ensign is to be flown at the lighthouse. Since 2002, to maintain sovereignty over the island by Malaysia, lighthouse keepers and maintenance workers from MPA had to clear Malaysia's customs at

Kukup Kukup ( Jawi: ; ) is a small fishing village in Pontian District, Johor, Malaysia. It is famous for its open-air seafood restaurants built on stilts over the water. Regularly scheduled ferries connect Kukup with Tanjung Balai in Indonesia. Kukup ...

in Johor before heading to Pulau Pisang. Before 2002, there was no such requirement. In 2003, the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Singapore, S. Jayakumar, acknowledged that sovereignty of Pulau Pisang is with Malaysia and its sovereignty was never disputed. He also maintained that the management of the Pulau Pisang Lighthouse should remain with Singapore.

References

External links

Picture of Banana Island Lighthouse
Lighthouses completed in 1914 Lighthouses in Malaysia Buildings and structures in Johor Pontian District {{lighthouse-stub

History

See also

References

External links