Masum Kamal

The turquoise waters of Saint Martin’s Island, the only coral island in Bangladesh, have long drawn visitors seeking an escape to its secluded shores. But with the government’s recent decision to ban overnight tourism, many are questioning whether the island’s beauty can still be enjoyed without the night-stay experience it once offered.

Located in the southeastern reaches of Bangladesh, close to the Myanmar border, Saint Martin’s Island is a small coral island stretched on an area spanning 8.3 square kilometres. A popular tourist destination, the island lies 120km from Cox’s Bazar, the longest sea beach in the world.

During peak season, nearly 5,000 to 8,000 tourists visit the island daily on average from November to February.

Recently, the interim government's advisory council decided to limit tourism to Saint Martin's Island, with restrictions set to take effect between November and January and a complete closure in February.
Per the new directive, tourists will not be allowed to stay overnight on the island in November.

In December and January, up to 2,000 tourists will be permitted to visit daily and stay overnight. However, no tourists will be allowed in February as the island will undergo a cleanup process.

A ban on single-use plastics on Saint Martin's Island has also been announced.

However, businesses and travellers have been protesting the government’s decision, claiming that the locals will be unemployed if the limitations are implemented.

Additionally, the process may lead to the collapse of tourism businesses.

However, although the month of November has already begun, ships are still waiting at the dock waiting for the approval of the administration.

Sea Cruise Operators Owners Association of Bangladesh, or SQUAB, General Secretary Hossain Islam Bahadur told bdnews24.com: “For the approval of the ministry, clearance is required from the Department of Environment. Bangladesh Inland Water Transport will not allow vehicles to operate without clearance. We don’t know when they will grant permission either.”

Imranul Alam, the president of the E-Tourism Association of Bangladesh, or E-TAB, an organisation of businessmen and entrepreneurs of the tourism sector, told bdnews24.com: “A lot of resorts were booked this year. When the news of the ban on overnight stays broke out, we had to refund 90 percent of the ticket sales to the guests. It is evident whether the day-long tours are realistic or not.”

“The resort owners seem to be under some kind of curse. Ultimately, we are at risk of a huge financial loss. We are also in a mental disorder.”

IS THE DECISION LOGICAL?

Tour Operators Association of Bangladesh, or TOAB, President Md Rafeuzzaman told bdnews24.com: “A trip to Saint Martin is not possible without an overnight stay. That’s why we are actually protesting.”

Claiming that a limit on tourism will affect the livelihood of the locals on the island, he said: “Tourists can only go there within a time span of four months. If there are more limitations on top of this, then tourism will not work here. If tourism stops, the livelihood of the people who are engaged in works related to tourism will be affected.”

Saint Martin’s Island Environment & Tourism Protection Union Chairman Shiblul Azam Qureshi said: “I don’t think a day-trip to Saint Martin is logical.”

“Ships can no longer sail from Teknaf now. They will have to sail from Cox’s Bazar. It takes at least 5 to 7 hours to visit the island and then come back to Cox’s. No tourist will want to go like this. We have gotten to know about the refunds that had to be made for all the tickets sold. The owners have suspended ship operations until Nov 22. So, the day-long tour is not quite realistic.”

“This isn’t called touring. Maybe it can just be said that ‘I went to Saint Martin’. With such limited time in hand, will you eat? Drink? Or Walk?”

He said: “Generally, the ships depart from Cox’s Bazar at 9:30am and arrive in Saint Martin around 1pm. From there, they make a return trip that departs at 3pm and arrives at Cox's around 5:30pm.”
Qureshi also fears a huge loss of his business and trade due to these restrictions.

He told bdnews24com: “Investors have investments of over Tk 10 billion here. A lot of people will become unemployed. Carrying on the businesses for three months and maintaining them for 12 months is absolutely unrealistic.”

SHIP OWNERS AGAINST DAY TRIPS

As war intensifies near the Myanmar border, ships or speedboats can no longer travel from Teknaf or Chattogram. The ships can now only operate from Inani Beach to Cox’s Bazar.

The general secretary of SQUAB told bdnews24.com: “The tourists will not be able to enjoy the beauty of the island, as they will have to come back within the same day after having a meal.”

“The journey doesn’t end after reaching there within four hours. It takes an hour and a half to unload the ship and for the passengers to get down. The same amount of time is taken while coming back. All in all, I will say that it is not possible to have a day-long trip there. People go there for sightseeing and relaxation. Travelling in a rush is not possible there.”

“We only want four months. They can clean the island during the rest of the months. There are 11 sea vessels here. A maximum of 4,000 people can travel in them. They can issue directives to ban tourists from bringing single-use plastic.”

WHAT ADVICE DO BUSINESSMEN HAVE TO CURB POLLUTION?

Rafeuzzaman told bdnews24.com: “We are trying to protect the environment in Saint Martin. We have taken various measures as well. We will not allow single-use plastic. In addition, we have warned people about not eating turtles or turtle eggs, neutering the dogs, relocation, and unplanned infrastructure.”

“We will plant trees, keep the beach clean, and charge Tk 20 from every tourist and give it to the government. With that money, we will implement plans to protect Saint Martin with the help of the government.”

Shiblul said: “We have welcomed the government’s decision to ban plastic. However, if this takes time to implement, then all the plastics from the island can be sent away for recycling.”

Stating that he has been working with the Bidyanondo Foundation for the past two years, he said: “They are collecting plastic in exchange for food. This work has been successful to some extent.”

Opining that the government can build a biogas plant using decomposing waste, he said: “The government will get gas from there, they will get organic fertiliser, and the waste will be under proper management.”

He also stated that in order to prevent noise pollution from generators, solar panels may be used.

AIR ALTERNATIVE TO SEA TRAVEL?

Army Welfare Trust and Fly Taxi Aviation have made joint efforts to fix a route for air travel from Cox’s Bazar’s Inani Beach to Saint Martin’s Island.

However, the round-trip fare for a little more than 10 minutes has been set at Tk 22,000 per passenger and Tk 16,000 for a one-way trip. At least 7 people will be able to ride the helicopter per trip.

It takes around 2 to 2.5 hours to go from Teknaf to Saint Martin by ship. It takes longer if the ships depart from Inani Beach.

A round-trip to Saint Martin’s Island costs Tk 1,400 to Tk 15,000 depending on the quality of the ship.

When asked how the helicopter fare was determined to cover such a short route, R K Ripon, the owner and CEO of Fly Taxi Aviation, told bdnews24.com: The fare has been determined based on the cost. The helicopter that will operate on this route is a Bell-429 model. It is a dual engine helicopter. There are two pilots for this. The per hour flight cost was Tk 250,000. In every hour, we can manage four roundtrips. 15 minutes will be allotted for getting up and down the flight. This will be our flight cost.”

When asked whether the fare for this distance is logical, Ripon said: “I am having to rent a place for landing since we don’t have any allotted space to keep the helicopter or a helipad. We will have a cabin crew. They will need food and accommodation. Therefore, we have to make a separate agreement with the hotels.”

“For every hour, we will get Tk 320,000. And our expenses will be Tk 280,000 to Tk 85,000. This is why the fare has been fixed like this.”

RESTRICTIONS ON TRAVELLING IN SAINT MARTIN’S ISLAND

On Oct 22, Apurba Jahangir, deputy press secretary to the chief advisor, shared the details of the restrictions on tourism in Saint Martin’s Island.

He said, tourists will not be allowed to stay overnight on the island in November.

In December and January, up to 2,000 tourists will be permitted to visit daily and stay overnight. However, no tourists will be allowed in February as the island will undergo a cleanup process.

However, the authorities have yet to decide how these 2,000 tourists will be selected.

Environment Advisor Syeda Rizwana Hasan said: “It is being said that 41 percent of the corals have been destroyed. This is a national statistic. According to internationally accepted journals, if this continues, all the corals will be destroyed by 2025 and Saint Martin’s Island will sink. Where will the tourism go then?”