Mariveles


Mariveles, officially the Municipality of Mariveles, is a municipality in the province of Bataan, Philippines. According to the, it has a population of people, making it the most populous in the province.
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History

Colonial era history

Incorporated to the Kingdom of the Spains and the Indies by a Franciscan friar in 1578, Mariveles was called the town of Camaya and was part of the Corregimiento of Mariveles, including Bagac and Morong, Corregidor and Maragondon, Cavite. The name Mariveles comes from "Maria Velez", a Mexican nun who eloped with a monk back in the 1600s. With its natural cove, the port was used by ships from China and Spain to resupply.
The Superior Decree of July 1754 declared Mariveles' independence from Pampanga.
In the 19th century, the Americans established the first quarantine station in the old Spanish Leprosarium Hospital.

World War II

Mariveles Bay was the site of Mariveles Naval Section Base, completed for the United States Asiatic Fleet on 22 July 1941, and was surrendered to the Imperial Japanese Army on 9 April 1942. The Mariveles Airfield, a dirt runway at the Section Base, was the starting point of the Bataan Death March.

During the Marcos dictatorship

Just as the Philippines faced economic and political instability during the runup to the 1969 Philippine presidential election and the subsequent second term of the presidency of Ferdinand Marcos, it was revealed that two communities - Barrio NASSCO and Barrio Camaya - where the workers of the National Shipyard and Steel Corporation lived would be torn down for conversion into the new Mariveles Free Trade Zone in 1969, compelling the relocation of the residents who in turn launched protests until the MFTZ became BEPZ in 1972. BEPZ has made the port a trading zone, and brought industry to the municipality. Agriculture is a large part of the port export.
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 martial law era became known for human rights abuses, particularly targeting political opponents, student activists, journalists, religious workers, farmers, and others who fought against the Marcos dictatorship. This included activists who fought the relocation of the communities in Barrio NASSCO and Barrio Camaya.. One of the most prominent of these activists was Evelyn Pacheco-Mangulabnan, a Mariveles native who would later be honored at the Philippines' Bantayog ng mga Bayani for her role in resisting Marcos' authoritarian regime.

Contemporary history

On July 2010, the Freeport Area of Bataan Act became effective, turning the Bataan Export Processing Zone or Bataan Economic Zone under PEZA into Freeport Area of Bataan of Authority of the Freeport Area of Bataan.
During the first term of Mayor Ace Jello Concepcion in 2017, the municipality's coat of arms was updated to the current one featuring a Philippine flag star and sun, fish, grain, Bataan Death March marker, mountain, and gear, and with the founding year 1757. It changed its color from green to pink as the second version from 2019 to 2022 under Jo Castañeda. With Concepcion's start of second term as mayor on June 30, 2022, the seal reverted to its original green color.
On February 12, 2024, with the approval of the Office of the President of the Philippines through Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, the current third version of the 2017 seal began to be used where the seal now resembles the Great Seal of the Philippines and dropped the establishment year. However, the first version still continued to be used nowadays.

Geography

Mariveles is located around the Mariveles Bay, a large cove at the southern tip of the Bataan Peninsula. It is adjacent to Manila Bay to the east, and the South China Sea to the west.
Mariveles is from Balanga and from Manila via the North Luzon Expressway, Jose Abad Santos Avenue, and Roman Highway. It borders Bagac to the west and northwest, Limay to the north and northeast, and Manila Bay to the east.
According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, the municipality has a land area of constituting of the total area of Bataan. Of this, about 69% consist of the pastureland, 19% of forestland, 6% agricultural lands and the remaining 6% for residential and industrial use.

Barangays

Mariveles is politically subdivided into 18 barangays, with two are located within the jurisdiction of Freeport Area of Bataan. Each barangay consists of puroks and some have sitios.

Demographics

In the 2024 census, Mariveles had a population of 156,200 people. The population density was.
Mariveles is home to an Aeta community speaking a Sambalic language called Mariveleño.

Economy

The Freeport Area of Bataan and Bataan Economic Zone from November 20, 1972 to July 2010 under Philippine Economic Zone Authority ) is a industrial complex in Mariveles town that enjoys business advantages, including tax incentives, natural endowments, and leadership under Authority of the Freeport Area of Bataan Chairman and Administrator Mohammed Hussein Pangandaman. It is the only freeport in the country with a 10.9 million cubic meter-capacity dam that delivers 14 million gallons of water every day. It is complemented by water treatment and sewerage treatment plants which employ a sustainable waste water solution.

Government

Local government

Pursuant to the Local government in the Philippines", the political seat of the municipal government is located at the Municipal Hall. In the History of the Philippines (1521–1898), the Gobernadorcillo is the Chief Executive who held office in the Presidencia. During the American rule, the elected Mayor and local officials, including the appointed ones held office at the Municipal Hall. The legislative and executive departments perform their functions in the Sangguniang Bayan and Municipal Trial Court, respectively, and are located in the second floor of the Town Hall and in the adjacent building.
The Municipal Mayor as of the 2022 national and local elections, serving his second term in office, is Ace Jello "AJ" C. Concepcion.

Elected officials

Members of the Mariveles Municipal Council :
  • Municipal Mayor: Ace Jello Concepcion
  • Municipal Vice Mayor: Angelito S. Rubia
  • Municipal Councilors:
  • * Ronald R. Arcenal
  • * Susan M. Murillo
  • * Jester Ivan O. Ricafrente
  • * Jose M. Carandang
  • * Danilo T. Banal
  • * Omar B. Cornejo
  • * Vonnel A. Isip
  • * Jeff B. Peñaloza
  • Municipal ABC President: Marcialito L. Balan
District Representative : Maria Angela Garcia

Tourism

Mariveles' attractions, events and historical landmarks include:
  • Mariveles Five Fingers: A series of coves that looks like five human fingers when viewed from the air.
  • Mount Mariveles
  • Km 0 marker of the Bataan Death MarchLazareto de Mariveles: A Quarantine station established by the Spanish government in the 1850s to check and sanitize cargoes and passengers entering Manila. The Americans, upon their conquest of the Philippines, used the same system in their ports. The ruins of the old facility can be found inside the Mariveles Mental Hospital compound in downtown Mariveles.
  • Mariveles Church

Infrastructure

Transportation

Mariveles can be reached by a ferry plying the Mariveles to Manila route that has an approximate travel time of 40 minutes.

Expressway

The Bataan Provincial Expressway, also called Roman Super-Highway, is a limited-access toll expressway that connects Bataan to the provinces of the Central Luzon region in the Philippines. Mariveles is off Exit 55.

Energy sources

Utilities:

Education

The Mariveles Schools District Office governs all educational institutions within the municipality. It oversees the management and operations of all private and public, from primary to secondary schools.

Primary and elementary schools

  • A. G. Llamas Elementary School
  • Alasasin Christian Kiddie School
  • Alasasin Elementary School
  • Alion Elementary School
  • Balon Elementary School
  • Baseco Elementary School
  • BATAAN GN CHRISTIAN SCHOOL
  • Batangas 2 Elementary School
  • Bayview Elementary School
  • Bepz Elementary School
  • BEPZ Multinational School
  • Blessed Regina Protmann Catholic School
  • Cabcaben Elementary School
  • Cabcaben Kiddie School
  • Christ's Sowers Foundational Learning Center
  • Christian Community School of Mariveles
  • Ipag Christian Academy
  • Ipag Elementary School
  • Logos International Christian Academy of Mariveles
  • Lucanin Elementary School
  • Marina Bay Elementary School
  • Mt. View Elementary School
  • Renato L. Cayetano Memorial School
  • Santa Mariana de Jesus Academy
  • Sisiman Elementary School
  • SNCCC Learning Center of Mariveles
  • St. Nicholas Catholic School of Mariveles
  • St. Vincent Kindergarten
  • Sto. Niño Biaan Elementary School
  • Sunny Hillside School
  • The Salvation Army Educational Services
  • Townsite Elementary School

Secondary schools

  • Baseco National High School
  • Biaan Aeta Integrated School
  • Ipag National High School
  • Llamas Memorial Institute
  • Mariveles National High School - Cabcaben
  • Mariveles National High School - Cabcaben Annex - Alasasin
  • Mariveles National High School - Cabcaben Annex - Batangas II
  • Mariveles National High School - Cabcaben Annex - New Alion
  • Mariveles National High School - Camaya Campus
  • Mariveles National High School - Poblacion
  • Mariveles National High School - Poblacion Annex - Sisiman
  • Mariveles National High School Malaya
  • Mariveles Senior High School - Sitio Mabuhay
  • Mountain View Village Community School

Higher educational institutions

Tertiary educational institutions include:
  • Polytechnic University of the Philippines Bataan, a state university that offers baccalaureate degrees where students are scholars of the government. Opened in 1976, the campus is located at Barangay Malaya, Freeport Area of Bataan.
  • Maritime Academy of Asia and the Pacific located at Kamaya Point, Barangay Alas-asin, offering courses in the maritime industry. Students are accepted after passing stringent academic and physical examinations.
  • TESDA Mariveles Bataan Branch, located at Barangay Camaya and near the Public Market, Mariveles Municipal Hall, and Freeport Area of Bataan, offering technical and vocational courses.
  • Softnet Information Technology Center located at second floor SFB #8, FAB, offering associate degrees in computer studies.
  • Llamas Memorial Institute Inc.
  • St. Nicholas Catholic School of Mariveles Inc. located at Padre Zamora st., near St. Nicolas of Tolentine Parish