St. Martin's Island is a small island in the northeastern part of the Bay of Bengal, about 9 km south of the tip of the Cox's Bazar-Teknaf peninsula, and forming the southernmost part of Bangladesh. There is a small adjoining island that is separated at high tide, called Chera Dwip. It is about west of the northwest coast of Myanmar, at the mouth of the Naf River.
History and description
Millennia ago, the island used to be an extension of the Teknaf peninsula, but at a later time some portion of this peninsula got submerged and thus the southernmost part of the aforementioned peninsula became an island, and was disconnected from the Bangladesh mainland. The first settlement started 250 years ago by Arabian sailors who named the island 'Jazeera'. During British occupation the island was named after the then Deputy Commissioner of Chittagong Mr. Martin as St. Martin Island. The local names of the island are "Narikel jinjira" which means 'Coconut Island', and "Daruchini Dwip" which means "Cinnamon island". It is the only coral island in Bangladesh.
Most of the island's approximately 3,700 inhabitants live primarily from fishing. The other staple crops are rice and coconut. Being very common on the island, algae are collected, dried, and exported to Myanmar. Between October and April, the fishermen from neighboring areas bring their caught fishes to the island's temporary wholesale market. However, imports of chicken, meat and other foods come in from the mainland Bangladesh and Myanmar. As the centre and the south are mainly farmland and makeshift huts, most of the permanent structures are around the far north. During the rainy season, because of the dangerous conditions on the Bay of Bengal, the inhabitants have no scope to go to the mainland and their life can become dangerous. There is a hospital on the island, but in the past there has often been no doctor.
Transportation
The only way to reach St. Martin's Island is by water transportation: boats and ships from Cox Bazar and Teknaf. The only internal transport for island is non motorized van The roads are made of concrete, and their condition are decent. All the hotels run generators until 11 PM which are not allowed afterwards, so they then rely on solar power, which is popular throughout the island. There is no electricity supply from the national grid since a hurricane in 1991. The island is all about sun, sea and palm trees. During the day, it comes alive with water and beach sports, with beach parties and bonfires lighting up the evening skies.
Tourism
From 1989 to 2004, non-residential Bangladeshis and foreigners were the only people permitted on the island; however, this has changed and now residential Bangladeshis are allowed. St. Martin's Island has become a tourist spot, and five shipping liners run daily trips to the island. Tourists can book their trip either from Chittagong or from Cox's Bazar. The surrounding coral reef has an extension named Chera Dwip. A small bush is there, which is the only green part. People do not live on this part, so it is advisable for the tourists to go there early and come back by afternoon. A number of efforts have been proposed to preserve the several endangered species of turtles that nest on the island, as well as the corals, some of which are found only on Narikel Jinjira. Pieces of the coral reef are being removed to be sold to tourists. Nesting turtles are sometimes taken for food, and their hatchlings are often distracted by the twinkling lights along the beach. Fish, a few recently discovered, are being overfished. Every year the fishermen must venture further out to sea to get their catch. Most of them use motorless boats. It is possible to walk around the island in a day because it measures only 8 km2, shrinking to about 5 km2 during high tide. The island exists only because of its coral base, so removal of that coral risks erosion of the beach. Because of this, St. Martin's has lost roughly 25% of its coral reef in the past seven years.
Sovereignty dispute and Shootings of St. Martin's fishermen
Fishing is one of largest professional activities of St. Martin's Island's 5,500 residents; however, territorial disputes between Myanmar and Bangladesh have resulted in a state of tension between the countries that can erupt into violence, often targeting unarmed Bangladeshi fishermen. Below is a brief summary of shooting incidents against St. Martin's fishermen:
On October 7, 1998 between three and five Bangladeshi fishermen were killed by Burmese Navy forces just off the coast of St. Martin's Island.
On September 8, 1999 one Bangladeshi fisherman was shot and killed by Burmese Navy forces near St. Martin's Island. Nine crewmen from the victim's fishing boat abandoned it, swam for their lives, and were rescued by Bangladeshi forces. The Bangladeshi government lodged a formal protest note to Myanmar.
On August 20, 2000 the Bangladeshi police reported that Burmese border guards had shot and killed four Bangladeshi fishermen off the coast of St. Martin's Island.
In 2011 pirates attacked fishermen 5 km off the coast of St. Martin's Island and killed four of them.
On 6 October 2018, the Government of Myanmar updated its 2015-2018 map of Myanmar Information Management Unit showing St. Martin as a part of their sovereign territory and spread the maps in two global websites. Following the event, the Myanmar Ambassador in Dhaka was summoned by the Government of Bangladesh on 6 October 2018. Rear Admiral M Khurshed Alam, maritime affairs secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Government of Bangladesh handed over a strongly worded protest note to him. The Myanmar envoy said it was a “mistake” to show the St. Martin's Island as part of his country's territory.
Climate and weather
The best weather is usually between November and February; this is the major tourist season. Between March and July, cyclones can strike. The island was devastated by a cyclone in 1991 but has fully recovered, and was untouched by the 2004 tsunami. Thus, March to July is off-season for tourists.
