All about St Martin’s Island that Sheikh Hasina claims played role in her ouster

Before resigning as Bangladesh’s Prime Minister and fleeing to India, Sheikh Hasina wanted to address the nation but was not allowed to do so by the Army given the violent anti-government protests against her. Now, the undelivered speech by Sheikh Hasina, accessed by India Today TV, has revealed that the 76-year-old Awami League leader made a stunning charge against the US, hinting that Washington might have played a role in her ouster.

In excerpts of the undelivered speech, Hasina claimed had she handed over St Martin’s Island to the US, her government would have survived. But why did Hasina rake up the sovereignty issue of the strategic island in the midst of the protests against her?

More so, what is the significance of St Martins Island, and what is the US’s alleged interest in it?

WHERE IS ST MARTIN’s LOCATED

St Martin’s Island, located in the northeastern part of the Bay of Bengal, is a small coral island approximately nine kilometres south of the tip of Bangladesh’s southernmost peninsula, Cox’s Bazar-Teknaf, near Myanmar. It is Bangladesh’s sole coral island.

The island has a surface area of only three square kilometres and is home to around 3,700 residents who primarily engage in fishing, rice cultivation, coconut farming, and seaweed harvesting, which is dried and exported to Myanmar.

The island received significant attention recently, with allegations that the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), led by former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, had planned to sell it to the US to build a military base in exchange for help in winning elections.

However, these claims were rejected by the US State Department, which emphasised its commitment to respecting Bangladesh’s sovereignty and promoting democracy through free and fair elections.

HISTORY OF ST MARTIN’s ISLAND

The island is also known as ‘Narikel Jinjira’ or Coconut Island in Bengali, due to the abundance of coconut trees there. It is also known as ‘Daruchini Dwip’ or Cinnamon Island.

The island was once an extension of the Teknaf peninsula but was separated due to the submergence of a portion of the peninsula. However, this transformed the southernmost part of the peninsula into an island, disconnected from the Bangladesh mainland.

The island has a rich history, dating back to the eighteenth century when it was first settled by Arabian merchants who named it ‘Jazira‘. In 1900, a British land survey team included St Martin’s Island as part of British India and named it after a Christian priest called Saint Martin. However, there are reports that the island has been named after the then Deputy Commissioner of Chittagong, Mr Martin.

In 1937, the island remained a part of British India after Myanmar was separated from it. It remained so until the Partition of 1947, when it went into Pakistan’s control.

Later on, the coral island became a part of Bangladesh after the Liberation War of 1971, Bangladesh’s Daily Star reported.

In 1974, Bangladesh and Myanmar reached an agreement that the coral island would be a part of Bangladeshi territory.

MARITIME BOUNDARY ISSUE WITH MYANMAR

Despite the 1974 agreement recognising St Martin’s Island as a Bangladeshi territory, there were issues over the delimitation of the maritime boundary of the island. Bangladeshi fishermen often use their boats to the island, a major fishing hub, and faced detentions and firing warnings from Myanmar’s naval forces.

The island, till date, has not faced any questions about Bangladeshi ownership. But, it was the delimitation of the maritime boundary that threatened to spark a sovereignty war in the region, given its strategic location near the Bay of Bengal.

In 2012, the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), in a landmark judgment, affirmed Bangladesh’s sovereignty over the coral island, in a ruling that had significant implications for the country’s territorial waters and the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).

ROHINGYA INFLUX INTO BANGLADESH

A violent military crackdown by Myanmar forced over seven lakh Rohingyas, who are primarily Muslims, to flee into neighbouring Bangladesh in 2017. Thousands of them are camped in Kutupalong refugee camp in Cox’s Bazar, the world’s largest refugee camp.

And with Cox’s Bazar located very close to St Martin’s Island, there are reports that members of the Arakan Army, an outfit banned by Myanmar, are trying to stake claim to the island, though Bangladesh has denied it repeatedly.

There have been sporadic incidents of firing of shots between Myanmar’s junta and the Arakan Army in the past few years. This has prompted the Bangladeshi Navy to deploy warships around St Martin’s Island.

ST MARTIN’s GEOPOLITICAL SIGNIFICANCE

St Martin’s Island has dominated Bangladesh politics since the country came into existence in 1971. Its proximity to the Bay of Bengal and the maritime boundary with Myanmar have led to international interest, particularly from the US and China, in using the island to strengthen their presence in the region.

In June last year, Sheikh Hasina alleged that the US had intended to acquire St Martin’s Island and build a military base in exchange for the BNP’s victory in elections. She also claimed that the BNP, if voted to power, would sell the island to the US.

She asserted that her government would remain in power even if St Martin’s Island was leased out, but said she would never allow such a step till she was in office.

“The BNP came to power in 2001 by pledging to sell gas. Now they want to sell the country. They want to come to power by pledging to sell St Martin’s Island. I have no intention to go to power by selling the country’s assets,” Sheikh Hasina was quoted by Bangladeshi newspaper Prothom Alo as saying.

Her allegations drew a flat rebuttal from US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller, who called them “not accurate” and said that “no discussions” on taking over the island were discussed with the Sheikh Hasina-led government.

“We have never engaged in any conversations about taking over St. Martin’s Island. We value our partnership with Bangladesh. We strive to bolster our relationship by working together to promote democracy, including by supporting free and fair elections,” he said.

Bangladesh’s claims of St Martin’s Island being taken over by the US came following unconfirmed reports that the US was unhappy with Dhaka cosying up to China and wanted to take counter steps to diminish Beijing’s influence in South Asia.

It also came at a time when China is locked in several territorial disputes with several Southeast Asian countries in the South China Sea, another strategic location like the Bay of Bengal.