Davao Penal Colony

Davao Prison and Penal Farm (formerly Davao Penal Colony (DaPeCol)) was established on January 21, 1932 in Panabo City, Davao del Norte, Philippines. It has a land area of 30,000 hectares with a prison reservation of 8,000 hectares. During World War II, the Davao Penal Colony was the biggest prison establishment in the country which was used by the Japanese invading army as their imperial garrison.

On October 7, 1931, Governor Dwight Davis signed proclamation 414 which reserved a site for Penal Colony in Davao Province in Mindanao and on January 21, 1932 by virtue of Act No. 3732, the Davao Penal Colony was formally established. During World War II, it was used by the Philippine-American Armed Forces were more than 1000 Japanese were treated in accordance with the orders of American commanding officer. The Japanese Imperial Forces attacked Davao on December 20, 1941 and the colony was among of the establishments that were taken over by the imperial army.

The Japanese kept two thousand American prisoners in the penal colony. When twelve men escaped, later joining Wendell Fertig's guerrillas, the Japanese beheaded twenty-five prisoners. Major Stephen Mellnik, of Douglas MacArthur's South West Pacific Area (command), inserted the M1 S-X intelligence officer Capt. Harold Rosenquist into Mindanao in an attempt to rescue the Americans before they could be moved. However, the Japanese had already evacuated the camp, placing the American prisoners on a ship bound for Japan. However, that ship was sunk by an American submarine, and only eighty-three reached shore and were rescued by guerrillas.

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