THE NATIONAL ANTHEM

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The National Anthem, whose tune has a romantic background which links it to the exile of Sultan Abdullah of Perak to the Seychelles by the British, was selected by a special committee headed by Malaysia's first prime minister, the late Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj, who was the Federation of Malaya's Chief Minister and Minister of Home Affairs at the time. Initially, a world-wide contest was held for the composition of a national anthem for the Federation of Malaya. However, none of the entries including those from distinguished composers of international standing, were found suitable. The final selection was made at a ceremony held at the Police Depot, Kuala Lumpur on 5 August 1957. The National Anthem in fact is an adaptation of the Perak State Anthem, which was selected on account of the traditional flavour of its melody.

Between 1957 and 1963 the National Anthem was the national anthem of the Federation of Malaya. With the formation of Malaysia in 1963, it was immediately adopted as the National Anthem of Malaysia. On 4 April 1968 the National Language Act, which makes any act of disrespect towards the National Anthem a punishable offence, was gazetted. The honour of performing the National Anthem is restricted to designated individuals.

During the 1992 National Day celebration, the National Anthem was given a rather fast beat.

Source= The Information Malaysia Yearbook (95)