Kalayaan, Palawan


', officially the ', is a of the Philippines| in the West Philippine Sea under the jurisdiction of the province of,. According to the, it has a population of people.
Part of the Spratly Islands, situated within the South China Sea, the Kalayaan municipality, which includes Pag-asa Island, is 280 nautical miles north-west of Puerto Princesa and south-west of Metro Manila. It consists of a single barangay located on Pag-asa Island, which also serves as the seat of the municipal government. It is the least populated municipality in the Philippines. Kalayaan's annual budget is 47 million pesos.
Pag-asa Island has an airstrip, a 5-bed lying-in clinic, and a small elementary school.
Once strictly a military installation, Pag-asa was opened to civilian settlement in 2002.

History

There are records of the island having been inhabited, at various times in history, by the Chinese and by people from Champa in present-day Vietnam, and during the Second World War by French Indochina and Imperial Japanese troops. However, there were no large settlements on these islands till 1956, when Filipino lawyer, businessman, adventurer and fishing magnate Tomás Cloma decided to "claim" a part of Spratly islands as his own, naming it the "Free Territory of Freedomland".
In 1946, Vice President Elpidio Quirino reiterated the "New Southern Islands", the forerunner name for Kalayaan, as part of the Philippines.
In 1947, Tomás Cloma "discovered" a group of several uninhabited and unoccupied islands/islets in the vastness of the Luzon Sea.
On May 11, 1956, together with forty men, Cloma took formal possession of the islands, lying some 380 miles west of the southern end of Palawan and named them the "Free Territory of Freedomland". Four days later Cloma issued and posted copies of his "Notice to the Whole World" on each of the islands as "a decisive manifestation of unwavering claim over the territory".
On May 31, 1956, Cloma declared the establishment of the Free Territory of Freedomland, ten days after he sent his second representation to the Philippines Secretary of Foreign Affairs, informing the latter that the territory claimed was named "Freedomland".
On July 6, 1956, Cloma declared to the whole world his claim and the establishment of a separate government for the "Free Territory of Freedomland" with its capital on Flat Island. His declaration was met with violent and unfriendly reactions from several neighboring countries especially the Republic of China when on September 24, 1956 it effectively garrisoned the nearby island of Itu Aba and intercepted Cloma's men and vessels found within its immediate waters.
In 1974, Cloma ceded his rights over the islands for one peso, after being imprisoned by Ferdinand Marcos.

Presidential Decree 1596

President Ferdinand E. Marcos created the Municipality of Kalayaan by signing Presidential Decree 1596 into law on June 11, 1978. This established what the document described as "a distinct and separate municipality of the Province of Palawan".
PD 1596 defined the boundaries of the municipality as follows:
i.e. 7º40'N 116º00'E; west to 7º40'N 112º10'E; north to 9º00'N 112º10'E; NE to 12º00'N 114º30'E; east to 12º00'N 118º00'E; south to 10º00'N 118º00'E; SW to 7º40'N 116º00'E.

Republic Act 9522

Republic Act 9522 of 2009, which defined the archipelagic baselines of the Philippines, claimed sovereignty over the Kalayaan Island Group under Section 2, sub-paragraph A which described the territory as a "Regime of Islands"—a concept defined in the United Nation Convention on Law of the Sea for similar bodies of land.

Rival claims

In addition to the Philippines, China, Taiwan, Vietnam claim all claim the Spratly Archipelago either as a whole or in part. The Philippines occupies 10 reefs and islands. The People's Republic of China presently occupies seven reefs. The Republic of China 's solitary island is the largest in the archipelago at approximately 43 hectares. Vietnam occupies 21 islets and reefs. Malaysia claims 7 reefs including Layang Layang which currently hosts a naval base and a diving resort. Interest in the archipelago was reportedly triggered by Cloma's declaration and subsequent assertion by the Philippines.
In March 1976, President Marcos issued the Letter of Instruction No.1-76 organizing the AFP Western Command based in Palawan in response to the heightening conflict of interest in the region and to abate any untoward incident.

Geography

The Municipality of Kalayaan is located in the western section of the Province of Palawan. It consists of one barangay, Pag-asa, and currently exercises jurisdiction over eight islets and three reefs, with an aggregate land area of approximately. They are:

Topography

The islets that comprise the Municipality are generally flat. The highest ground elevation is approximately two meters above sea level.

Climate

Demographics

In the, the population of Kalayaan was people, with a density of. The civilian population, which includes children, was introduced in 2001.

Infrastructure

Rancudo Airfield

Pag-asa island hosts a 1,300 meter runway constructed in the early 70s on orders of Major General Jose Rancudo, Commanding General of the Philippine Air Force. In February 1992, the Armed Forces of the Philippines named the runway "Rancudo Airfield" in honor of its architect.

Beaching Ramp and Seaport

In June 9, 2020, the Department of National Defense led the inauguration of a beaching ramp on Pag-asa Island which was finally completed after three years. The facility enabled to bring in more materials and equipment to repair and maintain the airstrip and building of other facilities. Also, Department of Transportation confirmed that the new seaport and sheltered port in the Pag-asa island is completed and ready to operate by June 12.

Telecommunications

Telecommunications established a cell site, connected to its main network via VSAT, on the island in 2005 making normal GSM-based cellphone communication with the island possible. The first call on the system took place on June 12 at 5:18 PM between the mayor of the municipality at the time and a Smart Telecom executive. The company completed a maintenance visit to the cell site in 2011, thus ensuring continued operation of the facility. However, the cell site was inactive since 2015.

Environment

On June 8, 1982, Kota and Panata islands were designated are marine turtle sanctuaries by the Ministry of National Resources Administrative Order No.8.

Politics

The first recorded election in Kalayaan was on January 30, 1980 where Mr. Aloner M. Heraldo was elected as the first Municipal Mayor.
The Municipality of Kalayaan "demilitarized" on January 18, 1988, and the first appointed Mayor, Alejandro Rodriguez, was replaced by his appointed Vice Mayor, Gaudencio R. Avencena.
The first free election was held on May 11, 1992, where mostly young Municipal officers under the leadership of Mayor Gil D. Policarpio served for nine years.
A new administration assumed office on July 2, 2001, when Mayor Rosendo L. Mantes won the election on May 14, 2001.
It was replaced by Mayor Eugenio B. Bito-onon Jr. who served from June 30, 2010 to June 30, 2016.
The current Mayor of the municipality is Mayor Roberto M. del Mundo, won in upset victory on May 9, 2016.