Context:
Reports claimed Sheikh Hasina alleged that the US was considering St. Martin’s Island as a potential site for a military base.
More on the news:
- St. Martin’s Island, Bangladesh’s only coral island, gained attention after reports claimed that Sheikh Hasina mentioned in an undelivered speech that the US was behind her ouster from power because she did not hand over the island to it.
- Her son denied this, stating that Hasina did not make any such remarks.
The Controversy Surrounding St. Martin’s Island:
- The tiny coral island, located in the northeastern Bay of Bengal, has been at the center of a long-standing sovereignty dispute between Bangladesh and Myanmar.
- Despite a 1974 agreement recognizing it as Bangladeshi territory, the delimitation of maritime boundaries has been a source of tension, with Bangladeshi fishermen facing detentions and warnings from Myanmar’s naval forces.
- In 2012, the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) affirmed Bangladesh’s sovereignty over the island in a landmark judgment, with significant implications for the country’s territorial waters and Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).
- In June 2023, Hasina accused the US of intending to acquire St. Martin’s Island and build a military base in exchange for the Bangladesh Nationalist Party’s (BNP) victory in elections.
History of St. Martin’s Island
- St. Martin’s Island, also known as ‘Narikel Jinjira’ (Coconut Island) or ‘Daruchini Dwip’ (Cinnamon Island), is Bangladesh’s sole coral island.
- With a surface area of just 3 sq km, it is home to around 3,700 residents who primarily engage in fishing, rice cultivation, coconut farming, and seaweed harvesting.
- The island’s history dates back to the 18th century when it was first settled by Arabian merchants who named it ‘Jazira’.
- In 1900, under British rule and was named after a Christian priest or the Deputy Commissioner of Chittagong, Mr. Martin.
- In 1937, the island remained a part of British India after Myanmar was separated from it.
- After the Partition of 1947, St. Martin’s Island became part of Pakistan until the Liberation War of 1971, when it joined Bangladesh.
- In 1974, Bangladesh and Myanmar reached an agreement that the coral island would be a part of Bangladeshi territory.