Dhaka summons Myanmar envoy for 'misrepresenting' B'desh on map

Protesting misrepresentation of Saint Martin's island as a part of Myanmar territory in maps displayed on its official websites, Bangladesh Foreign Ministry on Saturday summoned Myanmar Ambassador in Dhaka.

In 1937, when Burma (Myanmar) got separated from British India, the Saint Martin's island remained part of the then undivided India. After the India-Pakistan partition in 1947, it was with the then East Pakistan. Then after Bangladesh's War of Independence in 1971, the island remained with the country.

The first maritime boundary agreement with Myanmar in 1974 and even the UN court's verdict on the maritime dispute between the two countries had mentioned that the Saint Martin's island is part of Bangladesh.

"We summoned Myanmar ambassador Lwin Oo and handed him over a strong protest note over the map which tended to show our St Martin's Island within their territorial waters," a foreign ministry official familiar with the development told PTI.

According to media reports, Myanmar updated its map on the official website of the Department of Population, dop.gov.mm, and another website, themimu.info, in a way that shows that the Saint Martin's Island is part of its territory.

"We demanded an immediate explanation from Naypyidaw over its false claim," the official, who does not want to be named, said.

He said Dhaka feared an "ulterior motive" behind the new map uploaded by Myanmar's Information Management Unit (MIMU).

The incident came at a time when Bangladesh is stressing that the international community must ensure a continuous flow of humanitarian assistance for the Rohingyas temporarily sheltered in the country.

Dhaka has also accused Naypyidaw of dillydallying the repatriation of the the Rohingyas under a bilateral deal and even after promising repeatedly to initiate the process.