Tarutao National Marine Park
Encyclopedia
Tarutao National Marine Park consists of 51 islands located in the Andaman Sea
, off the coast
of Satun Province
of Southern Thailand
. The Tarutao National Marine Park consists of two island groups: Tarutao and Adang-Rawi , which are scattered from 20 to 70 kilometers distance from the southwestern most point of mainland Thailand. The park covers an area of 1,490 square kilometers (1,260 ocean, 230 island). The southern most end of the Park lies on the border with Malaysia. Tarutao became Thailand's second marine national park on April 19, 1974. The coastal Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park
had been designated in 1966.
The name Tarutao is a Thai
corruption of its original Malay
name, Pulau Tertua (the island of old).
The island had been used in the late 1930s as a penal colony
for Thai political prisoner
s. During World War II
, when support from the mainland was cut off, the guards and prisoners banded together and formed raiding parties on ships sailing through the waters near the island. The raids were masterminded by a American plantation owner who blamed the war for his loss of fortune and he was assisted to implement his plans by two British non commissioned officers who were on the run for murder and who ironically landed on Tarutao to sit out the war. They sank 130 ships always killing everybody on board. After the pirates
of Tarutao were eradicated by British forces at the end of the war, fishermen and farmers took up residence on the island.
, the 2002 season for the reality television series, Survivor. The Philippine
version of the said series was also set there six years later.
Andaman Sea
The Andaman Sea or Burma Sea is a body of water to the southeast of the Bay of Bengal, south of Burma, west of Thailand and east of the Andaman Islands, India; it is part of the Indian Ocean....
, off the coast
Coast
A coastline or seashore is the area where land meets the sea or ocean. A precise line that can be called a coastline cannot be determined due to the dynamic nature of tides. The term "coastal zone" can be used instead, which is a spatial zone where interaction of the sea and land processes occurs...
of Satun Province
Satun Province
Satun is one of the southern provinces of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are Trang, Phatthalung and Songkhla...
of Southern Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
. The Tarutao National Marine Park consists of two island groups: Tarutao and Adang-Rawi , which are scattered from 20 to 70 kilometers distance from the southwestern most point of mainland Thailand. The park covers an area of 1,490 square kilometers (1,260 ocean, 230 island). The southern most end of the Park lies on the border with Malaysia. Tarutao became Thailand's second marine national park on April 19, 1974. The coastal Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park
Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park
Khao Sam Roi Yot is a marine national park in Sam Roi Yot district, Prachuap Khiri Khan Province, Thailand. It covers 98.08 km², of which 20.88 km² are marine areas. The park was established in 1966, and was the first coastal national park of Thailand....
had been designated in 1966.
The name Tarutao is a Thai
Thai language
Thai , also known as Central Thai and Siamese, is the national and official language of Thailand and the native language of the Thai people, Thailand's dominant ethnic group. Thai is a member of the Tai group of the Tai–Kadai language family. Historical linguists have been unable to definitively...
corruption of its original Malay
Malay language
Malay is a major language of the Austronesian family. It is the official language of Malaysia , Indonesia , Brunei and Singapore...
name, Pulau Tertua (the island of old).
Main (larger) islands
There are essentially 9 islands of note in the Tarutao/Adang-Rawi archipelagoes:- Tarutao Archipelago (located approximately 30 km off the Thai coast)
- Ko Tarutao - The largest of the islands, Ko Tarutao is 26.5 km long, and 11 km wide. The highest point is over 700 m. Forest covers over 60% of the island.
- Klang Archipelago (located approximately 38 km off the Thai coast)
- Ko Klang เกาะไข, Ko Ta-Nga
- Adang Archipelago (located approximately 45 km west of Tarutao)
- Ko Adang , Ko Rawi , Ko Lipe , Ko Butang (also written as Tong or Dong; ), Ko Lek
- In the Adang Archipelago, the small (4 km²) island of Lipe is the most important. With water available year-round, it is the home of the largest permanent settlement, of approximately 800, and the gateway for boat transportation in and out of the Adang group.
History
The park was established in 1974. In 1982, it was listed as one of the original ASEAN Heritage Parks. It was also submitted to UNESCO for inclusion to the World Heritage in 1990, but its listing was deferred in the fifteenth session of the World Heritage Committee in 1991. The UNESCO requested a stronger management of the area.The island had been used in the late 1930s as a penal colony
Penal colony
A penal colony is a settlement used to exile prisoners and separate them from the general populace by placing them in a remote location, often an island or distant colonial territory...
for Thai political prisoner
Political prisoner
According to the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, a political prisoner is ‘someone who is in prison because they have opposed or criticized the government of their own country’....
s. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, when support from the mainland was cut off, the guards and prisoners banded together and formed raiding parties on ships sailing through the waters near the island. The raids were masterminded by a American plantation owner who blamed the war for his loss of fortune and he was assisted to implement his plans by two British non commissioned officers who were on the run for murder and who ironically landed on Tarutao to sit out the war. They sank 130 ships always killing everybody on board. After the pirates
Piracy
Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence at sea. The term can include acts committed on land, in the air, or in other major bodies of water or on a shore. It does not normally include crimes committed against persons traveling on the same vessel as the perpetrator...
of Tarutao were eradicated by British forces at the end of the war, fishermen and farmers took up residence on the island.
Appearance on television
Ko Tarutao was the setting for Survivor: ThailandSurvivor: Thailand
Survivor: Thailand is the fifth season of the United States reality show Survivor. It was filmed in the summer of 2002 and aired from September 19 – December 19, 2002 on CBS. It was set on the island of Ko Tarutao in Thailand. Fourteen episodes aired weekly. The two initial tribes were Chuay...
, the 2002 season for the reality television series, Survivor. The Philippine
Survivor Philippines
The first season of Survivor Philippines premiered on September 15, 2008, and ended its run on December 12 of the same year. Auditions for this season were held in six Philippine cities in May 2008. From these auditions, 18 contestants were selected to participate on the show in June 2008...
version of the said series was also set there six years later.