Guimaras
Guimaras, officially the Province of Guimaras, is an island province in the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. The capital is Jordan, while the largest local government unit is the municipality of Buenavista. The province is situated in Panay Gulf, between the islands of Panay and Negros. To the northwest is the city and province of Iloilo and to the southeast is Negros Occidental. The whole island is part of the Metro Iloilo–Guimaras, one of the twelve metropolitan areas of the Philippines.
The province consists primarily of Guimaras Island, and also includes Inampulugan, Guiwanon, Panobolon, Natunga, Nadulao, and many surrounding islets.
Guimaras, formerly known as Himal-os, was a sub-province of Iloilo until it was made an independent province on May 22, 1992.
History
Spanish colonial era
About 1581, Gonzalo Ronquillo de Peñalosa, Spanish governor and Captain-General of the Philippine Islands, established a settlement in Guimaras for the purpose of Christianizing the island's natives. He and his subordinates organized the pueblicitos or villages of Nayup under the patronage of Saint Peter the Apostle, and Igang with Saint Anne as patroness.Evangelization of Guimaras occurred around the same time the friars were making inroads in Panay. The Augustinians established the visitas of Nayup and Igang as subordinate to Oton, Iloilo. Gómez Pérez Dasmariñas, the 7th Spanish Governor-General, noted in a June 20, 1591, report to King Philip II that the friars of Oton made regular visits to the island.
In 1742, the island came under the jurisdiction of Dumangas – now known as Iloilo, until 1751 when the Augustinian Order was replaced by the Jesuits, after which the Dominican order took over Guimaras. The Jesuits, who had established a school in Iloilo and had missions in Molo and Arevalo, took charge of the island. By 1755, it was organized into a regular parish. When the population increased considerably, the island was given its municipal status with a seat of government at Tilad.
American colonial era
Under American rule, the Guimarasnons were given the opportunity to elect their municipal president in 1908.Douglas MacArthur, a fresh graduate from West Point as a Second Lieutenant at the age of 23, came to Iloilo as the head of the company of U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. They constructed roads and the Santo Rosario Wharf, presently named MacArthur's Wharf, which are still in use today. In November 1903, while working on Guimaras, he was ambushed by a pair of Filipino brigands or guerrillas; he shot and killed both with his pistol.
Japanese occupation
In 1942, Japanese Imperial forces landed on Guimaras Island as the Empire of Japan began its occupation of the country during the Second World War. The Japanese controlled almost every island between the Philippines and Hawaii. The U.S. Forces needed these islands to run aircraft to and from the Philippines, while denying Japan usage. The U.S. Army and Navy planned indirect attacks that would eventually lead them to Luzon.In 1945, the combined United States and Philippine Commonwealth forces landed on Guimaras Island and Inampulungan Island on 19 March, attacking the Japanese and defeating them in the Battle of Guimaras, which led to the liberation of the island.
Postwar Era
Guimaras gained its status as a sub-province of Iloilo through Republic Act 4667, which was enacted by Congress on June 18, 1966.Marcos dictatorship
The beginning months of the 1970s had marked a period of turmoil and change in the Philippines, as well as in Guimaras. During his bid to be the first Philippine president to be re-elected for a second term, Ferdinand Marcos launched an unprecedented number of foreign debt-funded public works projects. This caused the Philippine economy to take a sudden downwards turn known as the 1969 Philippine balance of payments crisis, which led to a period of economic difficulty and a significant rise of social unrest. With only a year left in his last constitutionally allowed term as president, Ferdinand Marcos placed the Philippines under Martial Law in September 1972 and thus retained the position for fourteen more years. This period in Philippine history is remembered for the Marcos administration's record of human rights abuses, particularly targeting political opponents, student activists, journalists, religious workers, farmers, and others who fought against the Marcos dictatorship.A number of prominent Guimaras natives played an active role in the resistance to the dictatorship, and have since been recognized by having their names inscribed on the wall of remembrance of the Philippines' Bantayog ng mga Bayani memorial, which honors the martyrs and heroes that fought the regime. Among these were activist Maria Luisa “Luing” Posa-Dominado who became well known for escaping from detention soon after every time she was caught; and Nueva Valencia Municipal Councilor 2Lt Pablo G. Fernandez, who refused to be activated as a Philippine Army Reservist if it meant implementing Martial Law, and was detained and summarily executed as a result. There was also Alpha Phi Omega fraternity Grand Chancellor Edgardo Dojillo, whose family hailed from Guimaras, who led is fraternity in protesting the administration and was targeted and killed in an ambush by the 332nd Philippine Constabulary Company just a few weeks after the martial law declaration.
Many of those caught because no actual cases were filed against them, were detained in Camp Martin Delgado in Iloilo, the nearest major facility under the Regional Command for the Administration III in the Visayas.
Provincial Status
Guimaras was proclaimed as a regular and full-fledged province on May 22, 1992, after a plebiscite was conducted to ratify the approval of its conversion pursuant to Section 462 of R.A. 7160.Shortly after Guimaras acquired its provincial status, President Fidel V. Ramos appointed Emily Relucio-López as its first Governor.
The province of Guimaras was originally composed of three municipalities: Buenavista, Jordan, and Nueva Valencia. In 1995, through Republic Act No. 7896 and Republic Act No. 7897, the municipalities of Sibunag and San Lorenzo were created. The two new municipalities officially acquired their municipal status after the May 8, 1995, plebiscite held simultaneously with the local election.
Ernesto L. Gedalanga was the first appointed mayor of Sibunag and Arsenio Zambarrano was also appointed mayor of San Lorenzo. The temporary seat of government of the Municipality of Sibunag is at Barangay Dasal while the temporary seat of Government of the Municipality of San Lorenzo is at Barangay Cabano.
Contemporary
Guimaras oil spill
In August 2006, the Guimaras oil spill occurred. The 998-ton MT Solar 1, chartered by Petron, carrying 2.4 million litres of bunker fuel, sank off the island's southern coast, contaminating. The Philippine Coast Guard called this the worst oil spill in the country's history. According to officials, of mangroves were affected, including parts of the Taklong Island National Marine Reserve.Geography
Guimaras comprises primarily of Guimaras Island, and numerous minor islets, prominent among which are Inampulugan, Guiwanon, Panobolon, Natunga and Nadulao. The province covers a total area of occupying the southeastern section of the Western Visayas region.Sibunag River is the longest river in Guimaras with a total length of in municipality of Sibunag, followed by Cabano River long in San Lorenzo, Mantangingi River 17.4 km in Buenavista.
Mount Bontoc is the highest point in the province of Guimaras with an elevation of above sea level, located in municipality of Sibunag. Mount Dinulman is the second highest mountain with an elevation of also located in Sibunag.
The province has 5 municipalities. There is only one legislative district of Guimaras which encompasses all five towns.
Demographics
The population of Guimaras in the 2024 census was 192,874 people, with a density of.Language
The people of the province, called Guimarasnon, speak Hiligaynon as the primary language, as it was once a sub-province of Iloilo. Filipino and English are widely spoken and understood.Religion
Catholicism
The two predominant religions in the municipality are the Roman Catholic Church and the Iglesia Filipina Independiente. The St. Paul's Theological Seminary in Jordan is the regional seminary of the Philippine Independent Church serving its Visayas and Mindanao dioceses.Economy
The sectors having the most potential to support Guimaras's economic development are mangoes, tourism, cashew cultivation, and food processing. Another expanding sector is fishery, which includes growing seaweed. Infrastructure, capacity-building initiatives, more favorable legislation, and higher investments are just a few examples of local variables that have boosted the potential growth of these industries.Guimaras is well known for its agricultural crops, particularly the mangoes, half of all exported mangoes come from this island. The island province is famous for producing one of the sweetest mangoes in the world, thus earning the nickname "Mango Capital of the Philippines" from local and foreign tourists. Guimaras mangoes are reportedly served at the White House and Buckingham Palace. Guimaras's largest event of the year is the Manggahan Festival. The variety of mangoes produced are also best for making dried mangoes, jam and other special delicacies. They also produce other fruits and vegetables such as bananas, tomatoes, and eggplants among others.
Transportation
ply regularly from Iloilo-Guimaras Ferry Terminal in Iloilo City Proper to Jordan, Guimaras and Buenavista, Guimaras, taking about 15 to 20 minutes per journey. RORO or roll-on/roll-off vessels sail from Lapuz, Iloilo City to Jordan Port in Jordan, Guimaras, every 30 minutes to one hour starting at 4:30AM to 6:30PM, taking about 30mins per way.There is also a Ferry plying from Sibunag Port to Pulupandan in Negros Occidental.