Stadium Merdeka
The Independence Stadium or Merdeka Stadium is a stadium in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It is known as the site of the formal declaration of independence of the Federation of Malaya on 31 August 1957. The stadium is also the site of the proclamation of Malaysia on 16 September 1963.
Currently owned by Permodalan Nasional Berhad, the stadium has a lower and an upper terrace, with a total capacity of 25,000. It has 14 tunnels entrances, a covered stand, 50 turnstiles and four floodlight towers. The stadium was designed by American architect Stanley Jewkes, under the instruction of the first Prime Minister of Malaysia, Tunku Abdul Rahman. Upon its completion, the stadium holds the world record for the tallest prestressed floodlight towers and the biggest cantilever shell roofs. The stadium was the largest stadium in Southeast Asia at the time of completion.
The stadium was the principal venue in Kuala Lumpur for celebrations and sporting events until 1998 when the National Stadium was built for the 16th Commonwealth Games. Prior to that, the stadium was the home ground for the Malaysian national football team. The stadium witnessed the historic qualifying match of the 1980 Olympic Games, when the national football team last qualified the Olympic Games. However, due to the boycott against the Soviet Union led by the United States, the country did not participate in the final tournament. The stadium was also the venue for the Merdeka Tournament until 1995. Besides that, the stadium had hosted three out of the five Southeast Asian Games held in Kuala Lumpur. The stadium also hosted the fight between the legendary boxer Muhammad Ali and British boxer Joe Bugner in 1975, prior to the Thrilla in Manila. In 1975, the stadium also hosted the Hockey World Cup final between Pakistan and India.
The stadium is currently a national heritage building. In 2008, the Independence Stadium received the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Award for Excellence for Heritage Conservation owing to its cultural significance and embodiment of a unique independence declaration event.
History
Background
Since the 1930s, the Football Association of Selangor, commonly referred to as Selangor, had been urging the government for a professional football stadium to be built. The request had been ignored as there is in fact a MAHA Stadium, the first stadium of Selangor in collaboration with MAHA , is still there located at Jalan Ampang at that time. However, the MAHA Stadium was ruined by the Japanese army in the World War II. After the war, the FAS and the Football Association of Malaya stepped up their efforts to get a new stadium as the MAHA Stadium in Jalan Ampang is now unusable. After Tunku Abdul Rahman was elected as president of the two associations in 1951, both associations fought hard to have a first-class stadium built.In 1952, an ad-hoc committee was formed by the Kuala Lumpur Municipal Commissioners to study the proposal, and a report was released three months later. Several proposals were also brought up to the Federal Legislative Council on this matter, including Tunku himself, but was blocked by the council. After the winning of the Alliance Party in the first general election in Malaya, Tunku, who was now the Chief Minister, started an advisory committee led by E.M. McDonald to study the possibility of building a stadium. On 4 June 1956, a total of 160 proposal plan was submitted to the government.
On 2 May 1956, Tunku and McDonald started looking for suitable sites for the stadium, one of the first places they visited was the Chin Woo stadium. While standing on the tower of the stadium, Tunku saw a few athletes practicing near the Coronation Park, and asked "Don't you think it would make an ideal spot for Stadium Merdeka?" Although McDonald was concerned about the traffic congestion that might arise in the future, Tunku insisted that it was the perfect spot for the country's first stadium.
The site was a Chinese cemetery before it became the oldest golf course in Kuala Lumpur, which had been abandoned since 1921. The site was then later called "Coronation Park" when George VI was crowned as the King of United Kingdom. Before it was decided to build a stadium on that site, several quarters were planned to be built on the site by the Royal Malaysia Police. The uneven ground of the site means that excavation work had to be carried out before it could be constructed. The construction of the stadium would also mean that a small part of the school ground of Victoria Institution would be acquired. Despite McDonald's efforts to persuade Tunku to choose another site for the stadium, Tunku insisted on building the stadium there.
On 11 July, Tunku bought this up to the Legislative Council and gained permission from it. Four days later, the project was transferred to the Malayan Public Works Department.
Construction
The stadium was constructed from 25 September 1956 to 21 August 1957, and was designed by the then Director of Public Works Department, Stanley Edward Jewkes. Several engineers such as Lee Kwok Thye, Chan Sai Soo and Peter Low were also involved in the project. The cornerstone of the stadium was laid by Tunku himself on 15 February 1957.Due to budget constraints, most of the construction materials were made locally, which meant that imported materials such as structural steels had to be avoided. To ensure that the stadium would be finished in time, the designing was done by "fast-track" method, which means that after each element of the design was finished, it was immediately constructed.
The stadium was constructed as an earthed amphitheatre, which means that a part of the stadium is below ground level. The excavated soil was then transferred to the site of Masjid Negara which was originally a valley and was subjected to flooding issues. When the earthworks and excavation were completed, designs of the terrace seating had already been done, and the construction of it began immediately. At the same time, the designing of the covered stands, the upper terraces and the stairs were carried on by the architects.
Two contractors were involved in the construction, Lim Quee for the construction of the main covered stands, while Boon & Cheah were responsible for the terrace and the tunnel entrances. Besides designing the stadium, Stanley Jewkes was also responsible for the traffic planning around the stadium. Other than Stanley, architect Edgar Green was also involved in the designing of the interior facilities such as the toilets and the canteen facilities of the restaurant.
The stadium held two world records upon its completion: the tallest prestressed floodlight towers at 120 feet and the biggest cantilever shell roofs. The floodlight towers, constructed from Hume culvert pipes, was also the first prestressed tower in the world which was made from precast culvert pipe units. Another interesting feat accomplished at the time is that all four towers were erected without using a crane. The shell roof for the grandstand, made out of concrete, was chosen as it was both economically affordable and aesthetically beautiful. Although the strength of the cantilever roofs were tested before the ceremony, Stanley was concerned that the roof might be unable to withstand the vibrations caused by the firing of the cannons during the ceremony, but it did not happen and the event went well.
Engineer Lee Kwok Thye credited the Kongsi Woman, also known as Lai Sui Mui for their role in the construction. The women were responsible for carrying concrete buckets from the ground up to the structures being constructed, where it was then poured into the framework.
Opening and the declaration of independence
The stadium was completed on 21 August 1957, while the opening ceremony was held on 30 August 1957, a day before the country declared independence. At the time of completion, it was the largest stadium in the Southeast Asia. The opening ceremony was opened by Tunku Abdul Rahman, which was witnessed by over 15,000 spectators, including foreign athletes. It was also Tunku himself who placed the foundation stone on 15 February 1957. The ceremony includes a mass drill performance by 1000 students.On 31 August 1957, power was transferred from the British Empire to the newly independent Malayan government. More than 20,000 people crowded into the stadium, which was built specifically for this occasion. The ceremony was attended by Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester, representing the Queen of the United Kingdom, the Malay rulers of the nine states, the last High Commissioner of Malaya Sir Donald MacGillivray, foreign dignitaries, members of the federal cabinet and Tunku Abdul Rahman himself. Following the handover of the instrument of the independence from Prince Henry to Tunku, the prime minister read out the Declaration of Independence, followed by the iconic seven shouts of "Merdeka" by Tunku. Following that, the national anthem was sung for the first time by a multiracial choir led by Tony Fonseka, while the national flag was raised by Oliver Cuthbert Samuel. The ceremony was continued with an azan call and a thanksgiving prayer, as well as a gun salute. A mass drill were also performed by the students on the event.