President Jokowi Inaugurates ‘Spirit of Free Indonesia Never Dies’ Fire Monument

President Jokowi Tuesday (09/11) inaugurates a Fire Monument of Semangat Indonesia Merdeka Tidak Pernah Padam (the Spirit of Free Indonesia Never Dies), at Bela Negara Court, Ministry of Defense, Jakarta. (Photo by: Presidential Secretariat/Lukas)

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo inaugurated a Fire Monument of Semangat Indonesia Merdeka Tidak Pernah Padam (the Spirit of Free Indonesia Never Dies), at Bela Negara Court, Ministry of Defense, Jakarta, Tuesday (09/11).

The monument serves as a reminder to all Indonesians to continue to ignite the spirit to safeguard the state ideology Pancasila, the spirit to maintain the nation’s unity, integrity, and harmony, and the spirit to continue to innovate to advance the country.

“President Soekarno once said: inherit the fire, not the ashes. Inherit the fiery spirit, the spirit to fight for independence, to give substance to the independence, and to build an advanced Indonesia,” President Jokowi said.

As a great nation with a great history, the President said, we must show the world that Indonesia is of particular importance for the world, can do many things for the benefit of the world, and deserves to be one of the leaders in the dynamics of the world.

According to him, the key is to never let the fighting spirit of the Indonesian people die.

“The Fire Monument is one of the reminders for us to ignite our spirit, the spirit to continue the struggle of our founding fathers and build the advanced Indonesia that we aspire to be,” he said.

Along with the Fire Monument, a statue of President Soekarno – popularly called Bung Karno – was also erected to honor his services as one of the pioneers of the Independence of Indonesia.

In his reports, Minister of Defense Prabowo Subianto explained that the statue depicts Bung Karno riding a horse during a troop inspection at the Commemoration Ceremony of Armed Forces Day, on 5 October 1946, in Yogyakarta.

“The fire that never dies is a symbol of the spirit, hope, courage, and passion of the Indonesian people to always love the country, be willing to sacrifice for the sake of upholding the sovereignty of the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia, as well as the spirit to continue to build the nation and state for the realization of a sovereign, just and prosperous Indonesia based on Pancasila and the 1945 Constitution,” the Minister remarked. (Presidential Secretariat/UN) (FI/MUR)