Why was it necessary for the Dutch to control the Kalang people?

Correct answer: They were skilled in forest cutting and important for timber supply

The direct answer is A: the Kalangs were skilled in forest cutting and were important for timber supply. In Java, the Kalangs were a community with special knowledge and experience of forest work. The Dutch wanted control over forests, especially valuable teak forests, and therefore needed people who understood trees, cutting, transport, and related labour. Option A is correct because controlling the Kalangs helped the Dutch secure timber and manage forest exploitation. Option B is wrong because the Kalangs were not described as sea kings. Option C is wrong because they were not cotton tax officers; their importance came from forest labour. Option D is wrong because they were a local forest community, not European traders. The reasoning is: teak had commercial value; profitable extraction required skilled workers; the Kalangs had that skill; therefore the Dutch tried to control them. This example also shows that colonial forest policy depended not only on laws but on control over local knowledge and labour. Memory cue: Kalang means skilled forest people whose labour mattered to Dutch timber policy.