A momentous moment in the history of Malaysia
The
momentous moment in the History of Malaysia that I am going to type about is
when Malaysia achieved Independence. Hari Merdeka (Malaysian for 'Independence
Day'), also known as Hari Kebangsaan (National day), refers to the day when the
Federation of Malaya's independence from the British Empire was officially
declared. At exactly 09:30 on 31 August 1957, the declaration was read by the
first Chief Minister of Malaya, Tunku Abdul Rahman at the Merdeka Stadium in
the presence of thousands of people including Malay Rulers, members of the
federal government, and foreign dignitaries. To commemorate the event, Hari
Merdeka was declared a national holiday in Malaysia and observed annually on 31
August.
The effort
for independence was spearheaded by Tunku Abdul Rahman, the first Prime
Minister of Malaysia, who led a delegation of ministers and political leaders
of Malaya in negotiations with the British in London for Merdeka, or
independence along with the first president of the Malayan Chinese Association
(MCA) Tun Dato Sir Tan Cheng Lock and fifth President of Malaysian Indian
Congress Tun V. T. Sambanthan. Once it became clear that the Communist threat
posed during the Malayan Emergency was petering out, agreement was reached on 8
February 1956, for Malaya to gain independence from the British Empire.
However, logistical and administrative reasons led to the official proclamation
of independence in the next year, on 31 August 1957, at Stadium Merdeka
(Independence Stadium), in Kuala Lumpur, which was purposely built for the
celebrations of national Independence Day. The announcement of the day was set
months earlier by the Tunku in a Melaka meeting of the Alliance.
On the night
of 30 August 1957, crowds gathered at the Merdeka Square (Padang) in Kuala
Lumpur to witness the handover of power from the British. Prime
Minister-designate Tunku Abdul Rahman arrived at 11:58 p.m. and joined members
of the Alliance Party's youth divisions in observing two minutes of darkness. On
the stroke of midnight, the lights were switched back on, and the Union Flag in
the square was lowered. The new Flag of Malaya was raised as the national
anthem Negaraku was played. This was followed by seven chants of
"Merdeka" by the crowd. Tunku Abdul Rahman later gave a speech
hailing the ceremony as the "greatest moment in the life of the Malayan
people". Before giving the address to the crowd, he was given a necklace
by representatives of the Alliance Party youth in honour of this great occasion
in history, with a map of Malaya inscribed on it. The event ended at one in the
morning the next day.
On the morning
of 31 August 1957, the festivities moved to the newly completed Merdeka
Stadium. More than 20,000 people witnessed the ceremony, which began at 9:30
a.m. Those in attendance included rulers of the Malay states, foreign
dignitaries, members of the federal cabinet, and citizens. The Queen's
representative, the Duke of Gloucester presented Tunku Abdul Rahman with the
instrument of independence. Tunku then proceeded to read the Proclamation of
Independence, which culminated in the chanting of "Merdeka!" seven
times with the crowd joining in. The ceremony continued with the raising of the
National Flag of Malaya accompanied by the national anthem being played by a
military band and a 21-gun salute, followed by an azan call and a thanksgiving
prayer in honour of this great occasion.
The day
followed with the solemn installation of the first Yang di-Pertuan Agong,
Tuanku Abdul Rahman of Negeri Sembilan, at Jalan Ampang, and the first
installation banquet in his honour in the evening followed by a beating retreat
performance and a fireworks display. Sports events and other events marked the
birth of the new nation.