It consists of a single barangay named Pag-asa located on Thitu, which also serves as the seat of the municipal government.

[10][11][13] After the Spanish-American War, Spain lost and ceded the territory of the Philippines to the United States through the 1898 Treaty of Paris.

The Americans at the time discouraged the Philippines to avoid conflict with the Chinese government of Chiang Kai-shek, who was an ally of the United States.

In 1946, Vice President Elpidio Quirino reiterated the "New Southern Islands", the forerunner name for Kalayaan, as part of the Philippines.

[20] On May 11, 1956, together with forty men, Cloma took formal possession of the islands, lying some 380 miles (610 km) 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".

His declaration was met with violent and unfriendly reactions from several neighboring countries especially the Republic of China (ROC; on Taiwan since 1949), when it effectively garrisoned the nearby island of Itu Aba and intercepted Cloma's men and vessels found within its immediate waters on September 24, 1956.

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.

[33] Investigator Shoal is currently under de facto administration of Malaysia although is claimed by the Philippines as part of the municipality.

On June 9, 2020, the Department of National Defense led the inauguration of a beaching ramp on Thitu Island (Pag-asa) which was finally completed after three years.

[45] Also, Department of Transportation (DOTR) confirmed that the new seaport and sheltered port in Thitu Island is completed and ready to operate by June 12.

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.

[49] On August 30, 2020, Smart Telecommunications repaired and upgraded its cell site for 4G/LTE services in Thitu Island (Pag-asa).

[50][51] In April 2021, the Department of Information and Communications Technology announced the installation of free Wi-Fi facilities at Pag-asa Intergrated School, Barangay Hall, and other sites on the Thitu Island.

[55][56] On June 8, 1982, Loaita (Kota) and Lankiam (Panata) islands were designated as marine turtle sanctuaries by the Ministry of National Resources (MNR) when it issued Administrative Order No.

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 (1992-2001).