Mariveles

 

Founded as a pueblo by a Franciscan Friar in 1578, Mariveles, the "Village of Camaya" 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.^[5]

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 (now known as the Mariveles Mental Wellness and General Hospital).

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 3,800-foot (1,200 m) dirt runway at the Section Base, was the starting point of the Bataan Death March.^[6]

Today the Freeport Area of Bataan (FAB), has made the port of trading zone, and industry to the municipality. Agriculture is also a large part of the port export.^[5]

Mariveles is located around the Mariveles Bay, a large cove at the southern tip of the Bataan Peninsula. It adjacent to Manila Bay to the east, and the South China Sea to the west.

Mariveles is 40 kilometres (25 mi) from Balanga and 164 kilometres (102 mi) from Manila via the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX), 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 153.90 square kilometres (59.42 sq mi) ^[7] constituting 11.21% of the 1,372.98-square-kilometre- (530.11 sq mi) 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.

Mariveles is politically subdivided into 18 barangays, with two are located within the jurisdiction of Freeport Area of Bataan (FAB).^[9] Each barangay consists of puroks and some have sitios.

In the 2020 census, Mariveles had a population of 149,879.^[3] The population density was 970 inhabitants per square kilometre (2,500/sq mi).

Mariveles is home to an Aeta community speaking a Sambalic language called Mariveleño.

Poverty incidence of Mariveles

 

The Freeport Area of Bataan^[22] (formerly known as Mariveles Free Trade Zone from June 21, 1969 to November 20, 1972, and primarily as Bataan Export Processing Zone (BEPZ) and Bataan Economic Zone (BEZ) from November 20, 1972 to October 23, 2009 before the conversion from BEZ to FAB due to Republic Act (RA) 9728 and secondarily from October 23, 2009 to June 30, 2010 during the eight-month transition period for the turnover of zone's operations and management from Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) to Authority of the Freeport Area of Bataan (AFAB) and subsequent abolishment of BEPZ/BEZ) is a 1,691 hectares (4,180 acres) industrial complex in Mariveles town that enjoys business advantages, including tax incentives, natural endowments, and leadership under AFAB Chairman and Administrator Mohammed Hussein Pangandaman.^[23] 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.

 

Pursuant to the Local government in the Philippines",^[24][25] 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 (1898–1946) (History of the Philippines (1898-1946)), 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 (Session Hall) 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.

Members of the Mariveles Municipal Council (2022-2025):^[26]

• 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 (3rd Legislative District, Bataan): Maria Angela Garcia

 

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 March
• Lazareto 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.^[27][28] The ruins of the old facility can be found inside the Mariveles Mental Hospital compound in downtown Mariveles.
• Mariveles Church

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

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.

 

Utilities:

• Mariveles geothermal area in Bataan: a geothermal area situated along the West Luzon Volcanic Arc.^[29]
• GN Power Mariveles Coal Plant (GMCP), Alas-asin: 600-megawatt coal-fired power plant ($155 million was purchased by Conglomerate Ayala Corp. in December 2012).^[30]
• National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) Mariveles Substation which hosts three 500 kV transmission lines which are Balsik–Mariveles, MPGC Mariveles–NGCP Mariveles, and GNPower Dinginin–NGCP Mariveles lines. The first is operated and maintained by NGCP, while the last two are by power generation companies (Mariveles Power Generation Corporation (MPGC) and GN Power Dinginin Ltd. Co. (GNPD) while having ownership on both respective lines).

 

Tertiary educational institutions include:

• Polytechnic University of the Philippines Bataan (PUP), a state university that offers baccalaureate (college) degrees where students are scholars of the government (after passing an entrance exam). Opened in 1976, the campus is located at Barangay Malaya, Freeport Area of Bataan (FAB).
• Maritime Academy of Asia and the Pacific (MAAP) 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 (SITC) located at second floor SFB #8, FAB, offering associate degrees in computer studies.
• Llamas Memorial Institute Inc.

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  Bay Walk, People's Park
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  Remote view of Mariveles
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  Zero Kilometer Death March Marker
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  Bataan Peninsula on 24 January 1945, with Mariveles Seaplane base, port and Airfield. Japan is bombing the runway. Mariveles surrendered on April 10, 1942 the start of Bataan Death March. Mariveles was retaken in February 1945
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  Mariveles District Hospital

• Roman Catholic Diocese of Balanga

 

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mariveles.

• Mariveles Official Website
• Philippine Standard Geographic Code