page_title: Merdeka Square, Jakarta
section_title: Medan Merdeka
hierarchical_section_title: Merdeka Square, Jakarta / History / Medan Merdeka
caption_attribution_description: English: The bust statue and memorial of Indonesian famous nationalist poet, Chairil Anwar. Located at northern park of Merdeka Square, Central Jakarta.
context_page_description: Merdeka Square is a large square located in the center of Jakarta, Indonesia. Merdeka is the Indonesian word for freedom or independence. Measuring approximately one square kilometer in area, if the surrounding fields within the Merdeka Square are included, it is considered one of the largest squares in the world. At 75 hectares, it is over five times the size of Tiananmen Square, and 12 times the size of Place de la Concorde.
  At its center stands the National Monument, often called Monas. The paved plaza surrounds the monument often host national events such as military and float parades, as well as civic demonstrations. Surrounding the Monument is now a park with a musical fountain in western side, and a deer enclosure where deer roam among the shady trees in the southeast corner. The square is a popular destination for Jakartans for sports and recreation especially on weekends.
  It is surrounded by important government buildings such as the Merdeka Palace, the National Museum, the National Library, Jakarta City Hall, Istiqlal Mosque, the Supreme Court and various governmental ministries. During the colonial Dutch East Indies era the square was called Koningsplein.
context_section_description: In 1949 Sukarno changed the name of Koningsplein to Medan Merdeka  ("Independence Square"). By this time, the square was already crowded by the existence of Gambir Railway Station, Police Department Head Office, Telephone Company Office, Ikada Stadium, a sport-hall, many parks, many football fields and tennis lawns.
  In 1954, President Sukarno launched the idea of erecting a "National Monument" at the center of Merdeka Square. Sukarno desired that the Indonesian people and the young independent nation had something to be proud of, a monument to commemorate the struggle for independence.  His ambition was to make the Monas the tallest building in Jakarta, higher than Borobudur and larger than the Eiffel Tower. A design competition was held in 1956, followed by a second competition in 1960, however the President was not satisfied by the design entries, and no winner was announced. Instead Sukarno — who had previously studied architecture — asked architects to refine sketches made by himself. The design of the monument was eventually resulted from the work of architect Soedarsono. Sukarno's layout for Merdeka Square was based on a plan initially developed in 1892 with diagonal streets radiating from the monument.
  The construction of National Monument (Indonesian:Monumen Nasional or Monas) was initiated in 1961, but it was only completed in 1976. Except the railway station, other buildings in the square — such as the Ikada Stadium and sports facilities — were demolished to make way for the construction of the monument, and replaced by four segments of garden. Today, the square is more popular with its nickname Lapangan Monas.
  The Merdeka Square is crossed by four diagonal streets which form an "X" with the National Monument at its center. The street is called Jalan Silang Monas and separates the square into four parts: North, East, South, and West parks. Soon after construction works of the National Monument were completed, new buildings were grown at the southern part of the square. The north, east and west park remained a park, while the southern segment was developed into a building complex. In the 1970s to early 1990s, this southern section was occupied by the fairground for Jakarta Fair from 1968 to 1992, while the southwest corner of the south park was used as Taman Ria Jakarta or Jakarta amusement park, including many exhibition halls, restaurants and night-clubs.
  The design of the parks stayed relatively unchanged from the 1970s to mid 1990s, and this situation led to the preparation of a master plan for redeveloping the square, established in 1993. The 1993 master plan guided the ongoing renovation conducted in the late 1990s to the 2000s, and gave the Merdeka square its present look. The aim was to return the function of Merdeka Square as an open space and green area. All buildings were removed and the square was transformed back to greenery. Since the early 1990s the fairground and the amusement park in the southern park were demolished had been given the old park function once again. The road surrounding the monument is not accessible to motorized traffic.
  In 2002, after Megawati was elected president, the Governor of Jakarta Sutiyoso built a high fence with gates and guards to enclose the entire square. While visitors can access the square without charge, beggars, vendors, homeless and other social groups were excluded. An army encampment has been set up within the compound to enforce the new rules. Other than attracted to the National Monument stands in the center, the square itself is Jakartans' popular destination for family recreation and outdoor sports activities during weekend, such as family picnics, flying kites, calisthenics, football games, jogging and bicycling. The paved plaza surrounds the monument often host national events as well as civic demonstrations. Military and float parades usually took place during the Jakarta anniversary around 22 June and Indonesian independence commemoration around 17 August. Flag raising ceremonies are held at the north end during city-wide public anniversaries.
  Since 
caption: The bust memorial of Chairil Anwar, Indonesian poet, northern park of Merdeka Square.
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