National
Monument
(Tugu Negara)
The
National Monument, dedicated to those who have died in the cause of peace
and freedom, stands on a commanding site at the Lake Gardens in Kuala Lumpur.
The whole area reserved for the National Monument occupies approximately 48,562 sq. m, of which one third is the actual area of the levelled crest of the hill. There are five principal features in the memorial area. These are the National Monument itself; a long reflecting pool with fountain; a crescent-shaped pavilion; the cenotaph and the ancillary gardens.
The National Monument, comprising seven bronze figures, stands on the oblong base in the centre of the reflecting pool. The figures represent different branches of the Malaysian security forces in combat uniform. Five of them depict the victorious security forces. The top-most central figure, the only one unarmed, holds the Malaysian flag. Lower down, to the left and right of the central figures are two soldiers, one holding a rifle and bayonet and the other a machine-gun. In the centre, between them, are two other soldiers, one wounded and the other giving aid and comfort. Below them are two fallen enemies representing the Communists terrorists.
The monument represents the triumph of the forces of democracy over the forces of evil. The memorial and its magnificent setting took over five years to complete, and is the brainchild of the American sculptor, Felix de Weldon, who also the created of the Iwo Jima Memorial in Washington DC. The Monument cost RM600,000 to build.
Courtesy of Information Malaysia 1997 Yearbook.