The Malayan Declaration of Independence (

Malay Malay may refer to: Languages * Malay language or Bahasa Melayu, a major Austronesian language spoken in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore ** History of the Malay language, the Malay language from the 4th to the 14th century ** Indonesi ...

: ''Pemasyhuran Kemerdekaan Tanah Melayu'' Jawi: ڤمشهوران کمرديکان تانه ملايو), was officially proclaimed on Saturday, 31 August 1957, by Tunku Abdul Rahman, the first chief minister of the

Federation of Malaya The Federation of Malaya ( ms, Persekutuan Tanah Melayu; Jawi script, Jawi: ) was a federation of what previously had been British Malaya comprising eleven states (nine Malay states and two of the British Empire, British Straits Settlements, P ...

. In a ceremony held at the Merdeka Stadium, the proclamation document was read out at exactly 09:30 a.m. in the presence of thousands of Malayan citizens, Malay Rulers and foreign dignitaries. The proclamation acknowledges the establishment of an independent and democratic

, which came into effect on the termination of the British protectorate over nine Malay states and the end of British colonial rule in two

Straits Settlements The Straits Settlements were a group of British territories located in Southeast Asia. Headquartered in Singapore for more than a century, it was originally established in 1826 as part of the territories controlled by the British East India Comp ...

Malacca Malacca ( ms, Melaka) is a state in Malaysia located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula, next to the Strait of Malacca. Its capital is Malacca City, dubbed the Historic City, which has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site si ...

and

Penang Penang ( ms, Pulau Pinang, is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia, by the Malacca Strait. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the Malay ...

. The document of the declaration was signed by Tunku Abdul Rahman, who was appointed as the nation's first

prime minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

. The event is celebrated annually in Malaysia with national day ''

Hari Merdeka Independence Day ( ms, Hari Merdeka, also known as ''Hari Kebangsaan'' or "National Day"), is the official independence day of Malaya. It commemorates the Malayan Declaration of Independence of 31 August 1957, and is defined in Article 160 ...

''.

Date of Independence

The date for Federation of Malaya's Independence on 31 August 1957 was determined after Tunku Abdul Rahman, Haji Sulaiman Palestine, Haji Ahmad Badawi, and a number of other

UMNO The United Malays National Organisation (Malay: ; Jawi: ; abbreviated UMNO () or less commonly PEKEMBAR), is a nationalist right-wing political party in Malaysia. As the oldest continuous national political party within Malaysia (since its in ...

leaders sought the views of

Syeikh Abdullah Fahim Syeikh Abdullah Fahim bin Syeikh Ibrahim ( Jawi: ; 1869 – 27 April 1961) was a Malaysian nationalist and religious scholar. He was Penang's first mufti after Independence. He was also the paternal grandfather of former Prime Minister of Malaysi ...

, a notable ''

Ulama In Islam, the ''ulama'' (; ar, علماء ', singular ', "scholar", literally "the learned ones", also spelled ''ulema''; feminine: ''alimah'' ingularand ''aalimath'' lural are the guardians, transmitters, and interpreters of religious ...

'' from

Kepala Batas, Penang Kepala Batas ( Jawi: كڤالا باتس) is the district seat of North Seberang Perai, Penang, Malaysia. Notable people Politicians & Public Servants * Tun Dato' Sri Haji Abdullah bin Haji Ahmad Badawi, 5th Prime Minister of Malaysia (31 Oct ...

. According to Syeikh Abdullah Fahim, if the British would not grant independence to Malaya on 31 August 1957, the next fitting date should be 31 August 1962. The Saturday 31 August 1957 was referred by Syeikh Abdullah Fahim as ''am khair atana'' (عام خير اتانا) in Arabic which means 'Good Year Has Come to Us'. It was confirmed in a February 1956 Alliance rally in Malacca after the Tunku had just arrived from the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

Declaration ceremony

On the night of 30 August 1957, crowds gathered at the

Royal Selangor Club The Royal Selangor Club ( ms, Kelab Di-Raja Selangor) is a social club in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, founded in 1884 by the British who ruled Malaya. The club is situated next to the ''Dataran Merdeka'', or Independence Square, ''padang'' (field), ...

Padang in

Kuala Lumpur , anthem = '' Maju dan Sejahtera'' , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , su ...

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 as the royal anthem '' God Save The Queen''. The new

Flag of Malaya This is a list of flags used in Malaysia. National flags Monarch Military Law Enforcement Flags Administrative divisions States Federal territories A common flag for the three federal territories was adopted by the Ministry of ...

was raised as the national anthem ''

Negaraku "" () is the national anthem of Malaysia. It was adopted as the national anthem at the time of the Federation of Malaya's independence from the United Kingdom in 1957. The tune was originally used as the regional anthem of the state of Perak� ...

'' was played. This was followed by seven chants of "Merdeka" by the crowd. Tunku Abdul Rahman later gave a speech hailing the ceremony as "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 Duke of Gloucester () is a British royal title (after Gloucester), often conferred on one of the sons of the reigning monarch. The first four creations were in the Peerage of England and the last in the Peerage of the United Kingdom; the curren ...

presented Tunku Abdul Rahman with the instrument of independence. Tunku then proceeded to read the declaration, 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 A military band is a group of personnel that performs musical duties for military functions, usually for the armed forces. A typical military band consists mostly of wind and percussion instruments. The conductor of a band commonly bears the tit ...

and a

21-gun salute A 21-gun salute is the most commonly recognized of the customary gun salutes that are performed by the firing of cannons or artillery as a military honor. As naval customs evolved, 21 guns came to be fired for heads of state, or in exceptiona ...

, 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.

The document

The document of the declaration was written in both Malay in Jawi script and English.

References

{{Reflist Declarations of independence August 1957 events in Asia 1957 in Malaya

Date of Independence

Declaration ceremony

The document

See also

References