Bendera Pusaka
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The ''Bendera
Pusaka Pusaka is a Sanskrit word meaning treasure or heirloom. Within Javanese Kejawen culture and other Austronesian cultures affected by it, known as the Malays, but most specifically the inhabitants of modern-day Indonesia and Malaysia ( Minangs), ...
Sang Saka Merah Putih'' ( en, The Sacred Red and White Heirloom Flag) was the first
Indonesian flag The Flag of Indonesia is a simple bicolor with two horizontal bands, red (top) and white (bottom) with an overall ratio of 2:3. It was introduced and hoisted in public during the proclamation of independence on 17 August 1945 at 56 Proklamasi ...
. Sewn by
Sukarno Sukarno). (; born Koesno Sosrodihardjo, ; 6 June 1901 – 21 June 1970) was an Indonesian statesman, orator, revolutionary, and nationalist who was the first president of Indonesia, serving from 1945 to 1967. Sukarno was the leader of ...
's wife
Fatmawati Fatmawati (5 February 1923 – 14 May 1980) is a National Hero of Indonesia ( id, Pahlawan Nasional Indonesia). As the inaugural First Lady of Indonesia, she was the third wife of the first president of Indonesia, Sukarno, and the mother of Indon ...
, it was raised for the first time when Sukarno proclaimed Indonesia's independence on 17 August 1945. Although required by law to be housed in the
National Monument A national monument is a monument constructed in order to commemorate something of importance to national heritage, such as a country's founding, independence, war, or the life and death of a historical figure. The term may also refer to a spec ...
, the flag is still kept at the Presidential Palace.


History

The ''Bendera Pusaka'' was sewn by Sukarno's wife Fatmawati. It was based on a 13th-century
Majapahit Majapahit ( jv, ꦩꦗꦥꦲꦶꦠ꧀; ), also known as Wilwatikta ( jv, ꦮꦶꦭ꧀ꦮꦠꦶꦏ꧀ꦠ; ), was a Javanese people, Javanese Hinduism, Hindu-Buddhism, Buddhist thalassocracy, thalassocratic empire in Southeast Asia that was ba ...
flag, which had nine stripes of red and white. It was first raised at Sukarno's house at 56 Pegangsaan Timur Street,
Jakarta Jakarta (; , bew, Jakarte), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta ( id, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta) is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Lying on the northwest coast of Java, the world's most populous island, Jakarta ...
, after Sukarno read the Proclamation of Indonesian Independence. It was hoisted on a short
bamboo Bamboos are a diverse group of evergreen perennial flowering plants making up the subfamily Bambusoideae of the grass family Poaceae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family. The origin of the word "bamboo" is uncertain, bu ...
staff by a group led by Captain Latief Hendaningrat; after its hoisting, the gathered crowd sang "
Indonesia Raya "" (; "Great Indonesia") is the national anthem of Indonesia. It has been the national anthem since the Proclamation of Indonesian Independence on 17 August 1945. The song was introduced by its composer, Wage Rudolf Supratman, on 28 October 19 ...
". During the first year of the
Indonesian National Revolution The Indonesian National Revolution, or the Indonesian War of Independence, was an armed conflict and diplomatic struggle between the Republic of Indonesia and the Dutch Empire and an internal social revolution during Aftermath of WWII, postw ...
, the ''Bendera Pusaka'' flew day and night. After the Dutch took Jakarta in 1946, the ''Bendera Pusaka'' was brought to
Yogyakarta Yogyakarta (; jv, ꦔꦪꦺꦴꦒꦾꦏꦂꦠ ; pey, Jogjakarta) is the capital city of Special Region of Yogyakarta in Indonesia, in the south-central part of the island of Java. As the only Indonesian royal city still ruled by a monarchy, ...
in Sukarno's briefcase. During
Operatie Kraai Operation Kraai (Operation Crow) was a Dutch military offensive against the ''de facto'' Republic of Indonesia in December 1948 after negotiations failed. With the advantage of surprise the Dutch managed to capture the Indonesian Republic's t ...
, the ''Bendera Pusaka'' was cut in half and given to Indonesian composer
Husein Mutahar Major Muhammad Husein Mutahar ( ar-at, محمّد حسين مطهر , Muḥammad Ḥusayn Muṭahar; full name: ( ar-at, سيد محمّد حسين بن سليم بن أحمد بن سليم المطهر, Sayyid Muḥammad Ḥusayn bin Salīm bi ...
for safekeeping; Mutahar was told to "protect the flag with islife". Despite being captured by and escaping from the Dutch, Mutahar managed to bring the flag to Jakarta, sew it back together, and turn it over to Soedjono. Soedjono later returned the flag to Sukarno, who was in exile in Bangka. After the end of the war, the ''Bendera Pusaka'' was raised once a year in front of the Presidential Palace during
Independence Day An independence day is an annual event commemorating the anniversary of a nation's independence or statehood, usually after ceasing to be a group or part of another nation or state, or more rarely after the end of a military occupation. Man ...
celebrations. However, due to the flag's fragile state, beginning in 1968 it has been replaced by a replica. In 2003, plans were released to relocate the ''Bendera Pusaka'' from the Presidential Palace to the
National Monument A national monument is a monument constructed in order to commemorate something of importance to national heritage, such as a country's founding, independence, war, or the life and death of a historical figure. The term may also refer to a spec ...
. In 2004, the relocation was expected to cost Rp. 3.5 billion (US$388,889), with the flag being stored in a 24-
karat The fineness of a precious metal object (coin, bar, jewelry, etc.) represents the weight of ''fine metal'' therein, in proportion to the total weight which includes alloying base metals and any impurities. Alloy metals are added to increase hardn ...
gold-plated Gold plating is a method of depositing a thin layer of gold onto the surface of another metal, most often copper or silver (to make silver-gilt), by chemical or electrochemical plating. This article covers plating methods used in the modern ele ...
case within the Independence Room of the Monument. However, the relocation has been consistently delayed. As of 2009, its storage at the National Monument has been mandated by law.


Description and symbolism

The ''Bendera Pusaka'' consists of two bands, red at the top and white at the bottom, at a scale of 2:3. The red stands for bravery ( id, keberanian), while the white stands for purity ( id, kesucian). However, alternative meanings have been proposed, including that the red represents
palm sugar Palm sugar is a sweetener derived from any variety of palm tree. Palm sugar is sometimes qualified by the type of palm, as in coconut palm sugar. While sugars from different palms may have slightly different compositions, all are processed s ...
and the white represents rice, both staples of
Indonesian cuisine Indonesian cuisine is a collection of various regional culinary traditions that formed the archipelagic nation of Indonesia. There are a wide variety of recipes and cuisines in part because Indonesia is composed of approximately 6,000 popula ...
.


Social impact

The ''Bendera Pusaka'' has been used in the name of the Indonesian
student organization A student is a person enrolled in a school or other educational institution. In the United Kingdom and most commonwealth countries, a "student" attends a secondary school or higher (e.g., college or university); those in primary or elementary ...
Pasukan Pengibar Bendera Pusaka (often abbreviated Paskibraka; en, Bendera Pusaka Flag Hoisting Troop). The organization, which was founded by Husein Mutahar in 1968, provides flag bearers for flag ceremonies in the local and national levels as well as in international functions for overseas Indonesians. This organization has a national board - the National BPFHT Council (''Purna Paskibraka Indonesia''). Their best appearance is during the Independence Day commemorations every 17 August.


Relocation

In 2003, the
governor of Jakarta The Jakarta Special Capital Region is administratively equal to a province with special status as the capital of Indonesia. Instead of a mayor, the executive head of Jakarta is a governor. The governor of Jakarta is an elected politician who, alon ...
,
Sutiyoso Sutiyoso (born 6 December 1944) is an Indonesian politician and former general who was the Director of the State Intelligence Agency from 8 July 2015 - 9 September 2016. Known informally as 'Bang Yos', he was the governor of Jakarta, the country ...
announced his plan to relocate the original ''Bendera Pusaka'' from the
Merdeka Palace The Merdeka Palace (; also known in Indonesian as ''Istana Gambir'' and during the Dutch colonial times as ''Paleis te Koningsplein''), is one of six presidential palaces in Indonesia. It is located on the north side of the Merdeka Square in Cen ...
to the
National Monument A national monument is a monument constructed in order to commemorate something of importance to national heritage, such as a country's founding, independence, war, or the life and death of a historical figure. The term may also refer to a spec ...
. For security and financial reasons, the Rp 3.5 billion (US$388,889) project was delayed for a year. Of the Rp3.5 billion, only Rp 500 million was allocated for the actual relocation ceremony, while most of the remaining Rp 3 billion was spent on procuring around 15 kilograms of gold for the
conservation Conservation is the preservation or efficient use of resources, or the conservation of various quantities under physical laws. Conservation may also refer to: Environment and natural resources * Nature conservation, the protection and manageme ...
room and on security measures such as alarms and security cameras. The spending was proposed in the 2003 revised city budget. The plan was to install the flag in a 24-carat gold plated case in the Independence Room inside the National Monument. Inside the Independence Room, there are three most important relics from Indonesia's history: the
Garuda Pancasila The national emblem or coat of arms of Indonesia is called ''Garuda Pancasila''. The main part is the Garuda with a heraldic shield on its chest and a scroll gripped by its legs. The shield's five emblems represent '' Pancasila'', the five prin ...
statue, the
Nusantara Nusantara most commonly refers to: *Nusantara (archipelago), an Old Javanese term which initially referred to the conquered territories of the Majapahit empire, corresponding to present-day Indonesia *Nusantara (planned city), the future capital ci ...
(Archipelago) map and the original text of the Proclamation of Independence, which all are kept in the gold plated cases.


References


Bibliography

* {{Indonesia topics Flags of Indonesia Historical flags National symbols of Indonesia