Original Proclamation Manuscript to be Displayed at Merdeka Palace

Handover of Bung Karno’s original text archive to be displayed at the Merdeka Palace (16/8). (Photo: BPMI)

The original manuscript of the Indonesia Proclamation, which was handwritten by the proclaimer as well as the first Indonesian President Soekarno, will be displayed during the Commemoration Ceremony of the Independence of the Republic of Indonesia at the Merdeka Palace on 17 August 2020.

The Presidential Secretariat and the National Archives of the Republic of Indonesia (ANRI) handed over the historic document on Sunday (16/8).

“Today we are witnessing that the ANRI – which has stored, maintained and saved the state archives – handed over Soekarno’s handwritten proclamation manuscript to the Presidential Secretariat to be displayed at the Merdeka Palace,” said Deputy for Administration and Management of the Presidential Secretariat Rika Kiswardani in Jakarta, Sunday (16/8).

The historic document will then be handed back to the ANRI on 18 August 2020.

“We will return the document in the following day to be preserved by the ANRI. We can witness a new history as this year’s independence day commemoration is different because it will be aired on television only or virtually,” said Rika.

For the record, quoting the ANRI’s press release on 16 August 2020, the ANRI has kept the original manuscript of the Proclamation in a special storage room since 1992.

Based on historical records, the manuscript was kept by B.M. Diah, a press figure and freedom activist, and later handed over to the Second President of the Republic of Indonesia Soeharto who then passed it on to Moerdiono, Minister of State Secretary for 1988-1998 period.  Moerdiono submitted the manuscript to the ANRI in 1992 to be kept and preserved properly. Since then, the ANRI has kept the original manuscript of the Proclamation. (BPMI/EN)

Translated by: Estu Widyamurti
Reviewed by: M. Ersan Pamungkas