Master photographer Eric Peris (Photo: Mohd Izwan/The Edge Malaysia)
Datuk Oh Chong Peng
Director, WCE Holdings Bhd
The Merdeka must-do for me these days is to proudly festoon two Malaysian flags on the front gate of my house. I remember being invited to Merdeka Day parades a long time ago but certainly not in recent years. As for Aug 31, 1957, I do remember the occasion but not too clearly. I was just 13 years old and, to be honest, I didn’t think that much of it. Teenagers then had very little opinion on such matters, I suppose. I was still a secondary student in Penang (at St Xavier’s Institution, one of the oldest Lasallian schools) and there must have been a declaration ceremony at the Esplanade. I can’t quite recall. What was clearer to me, however, was Jan 1, 1957, when George Town was declared a city, the occasion preceded by a visit from His Royal Highness Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, himself. And I also remember how the church next to our school became the Cathedral of the Assumption. But back to Merdeka Day. Being young, I can still recall how the school was obliged to give us the day off. To us kids then, life was simple. A holiday? Hooray!
Tan Sri Rafidah Aziz
Former Minister of Investment, Trade & Industry
My family was living in Gombak, Selangor, then and I remember my mother had gone shopping for a handbag and a new pair of shoes. She picked a light pink bag to offset her green hand-sewn kebaya which she matched with a batik sarong. On Aug 31, 1957, my parents left home very early, around 5.30am, to get to Stadium Merdeka in good time. I was left in charge of my two younger brothers,
one of whom was still a baby. Of course, I switched our Philips radio on to listen in on the live broadcast. I remember that feeling of excitement at the prospect of our nation being an independent sovereign country. I had to visualise the almost blow-by-blow account of everything that transpired, culminating with the magical word, “Merdeka!” being enunciated out loud by Tunku Abdul Rahman. It was a signal how we, as a nation, were finally free to chart our own destiny. Independence and national sovereignty are two very treasured things that need to continue to be preserved and upheld. We must never allow anything — or any party — to destabilise the nation and cause fractiousness. We must all continue to uphold that important social identity of unity in diversity. Sejahtera Malaysia Kita!
Tan Sri V C George
Former advocate, judge + arbitrator
1957 was the year I was called to the Malayan Bar. I had returned home the year before, after completing my studies in the UK. I began chambering with Sen & Lim in Kuala Lumpur, the law firm co-founded by P G Lim, one of the first female lawyers to practise in the country. On Merdeka Day, I remember enjoying a cold beer at Restoran Sin Seng Nam, which was known to one and all as the Vatican, by the old market square next to the Klang River, before going to Merdeka Stadium or the Padang. The Vatican, presided over by a fat Chinese man whom we nicknamed the Pope, was the preferred haunt of those of us who could not afford to join the clubs then. It was in 1963, after starting as a lawyer in Seremban, that I became a member of the Royal Sungei Ujong Club there. And only after relocating to Kuala Lumpur in 1970 did I join the Royal Selangor Club, of which I am still a most loyal member. Oh, I also remember being part of the pre-Merdeka ball in London at the end of 1956. The guest of honour at the celebration was the Duchess of Kent, with whom I danced, all because I was the only Malaysian tall enough to dance with the 5’11” duchess!
Eric Peris
Master photographer
I was still in Muar High School, Johor, then and I remember all of us were excited about Merdeka. The teachers had spoken to us extensively about it and one name was on everyone’s lips that day: Tunku Abdul Rahman. We were just students but could feel as if we were entering a new era, a new world. The whole town was excited as quite a few people had travelled up to Kuala Lumpur for it. A big deal, in those days. I think the country has evolved and yet maintained a strong bond through the common use of Bahasa Malaysia and the harmonious interaction and integration between all the races and cultures, something you see strongly in the art world. This is wonderful as it makes me feel that no matter where a Malaysian goes, he is never lost.
M R Chandran
Past national chairman and present director of the Incorporated Society of Planters (ISP)
In 1957, I was abroad studying at King’s College in Adelaide, Australia. The handful of Malayan students — there were about five of us boarders in total — on campus celebrated Merdeka by running around the school compound carrying a Malayan flag and shouting “Merdeka, Merdeka, Merdeka” multiple times. It was a non-event in Australia, as you can imagine. The rest of our fellow students, or the population at large for that matter, knew nothing about the Malayan Emergency or the guerrilla wars fought in British Malaysia in the days following WWII. Since this year’s celebrations are to be held in Putrajaya, I am planning to take my four grandkids to Dataran Merdeka for a morning walk and explain to them the historical significance of the Padang, followed by a hearty lunch at KLCC.
Puan Sri Rathi Khoo
Former teacher
I was 12 years old then, growing up in the small town of Teluk Anson [now Teluk Intan, Perak]. There was so much talk about Merdeka in school; so much so that I pestered my father to take me to the town’s Padang, where everyone had gathered. There were big screens and the mood was euphoric. At one point, P Ramlee appeared on the screen to sing. I remember my father buying me
ice-cream and peanuts. At midnight, there was the lowering of the Union Jack and our national flag was raised. Tunku appeared on the screen and proclaimed Merdeka, and everyone joined in the cry, including me although not quite understanding what it all meant.It did not cross my mind then that I would later marry someone (the late Professor Khoo Kay Kim) who would dedicate so much of his life to what I was witnessing then — the birth of the nation.
This article first appeared on Aug 26, 2024 in The Edge Malaysia.
