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flag history

The Indonesian Red-and-White Flag: Meaning, History and the Original

Indonesia’s Merah Putih was raised at the 1945 independence proclamation. Learn the colors’ meaning, the historic flag’s journey, and why a duplicate is used today.

By ThatPainter Team 3 min read
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Indonesia’s national flag is the red-and-white Merah Putih. The historic flag, known as the Sang Saka Merah Putih, was raised at the proclamation of independence on 17 August 1945. It is preserved today; a duplicate has taken its place in ceremonies since 1968.

What do the red and white colors on Indonesia’s flag mean?

Indonesia’s Directorate of Cultural Heritage explains the red as a symbol of courage and the white as a symbol of purity. Red-and-white designs also have older precedents in the region, including a nine-striped flag associated with Majapahit. That historical parallel does not establish that the present national flag was directly copied from the Majapahit design.

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Who made the Indonesian flag, and when was it first raised?

Fatmawati made the historic flag from cotton delivered after Soekarno requested it. The Directorate’s account places its preparation in the final period of Japanese occupation, after a committee discussed a national flag and anthem following Japan’s September 1944 promise of independence.

On 17 August 1945, at the proclamation ceremony at Jalan Pegangsaan Timur 56 in Jakarta, Latief Hendraningrat and Suhud raised the flag. Its name, Sang Saka Merah Putih, refers to this historic flag; Merah Putih is also the familiar name for the red-and-white national design.

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What are the flag’s proportions and the historic flag’s dimensions?

The Directorate gives the design’s proportion as 3:2. It records the historic flag as originally described at 300 cm long by 200 cm wide. A remeasurement on 13 November 2014 found it measured 276 cm by 199 cm; those are measurements of the historic fabric, not a different official design proportion.

Is the original Indonesian flag still used?

No. The original was last flown at the Merdeka Palace on 17 August 1968. It had become fragile, and a duplicate has been used for subsequent ceremonies. Conservation work was carried out in 2003, and the original is kept in a protective case.

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The Directorate identifies the original as a national-level cultural heritage object under Ministerial Decree No. 003/M/2015, registered as RNCB.20150201.01.000032.

How was the historic flag preserved through the independence struggle?

The Directorate’s historical account traces the flag’s journey alongside the republican leadership:

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  • In January 1946, it was moved to Yogyakarta with the republican leadership.
  • After Yogyakarta fell in December 1948, Soekarno entrusted it to Husein Mutahar. To hide it during an escape, Mutahar unpicked the seam joining the red and white sections and carried them separately.
  • Mutahar later rejoined the sections before returning the flag to Soekarno in Bangka. It went back to Yogyakarta in July 1949 and was flown there that August.
  • In December 1949, it was transported to Jakarta.
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What does Indonesian law say about the national flag?

Law No. 24 of 2009 covers Indonesia’s state flag, language, emblem and anthem. The official abstract describes these as “means of unity, identity, and an expression of the nation’s existence, and symbols of sovereignty and honor.” Indonesia’s BPK legal database lists the law as in force but notes that Law No. 1 of 2023 partially repealed Articles 66–71. Those provisions should not be treated as unchanged current law without consulting the consolidated legislation. This overview does not cover statutory display rules or penalties.

Choosing a flag for display

An ordinary display flag in the red-and-white design is distinct from the preserved historic Sang Saka Merah Putih. For proportions, the Directorate’s historical account gives the design as 3:2; it does not establish current merchant availability.

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