Four sculptors (from left) - Abdul Mansoor, Carney, Mufti and Zolkeply - who worked on the restoration of Tugu Negara after it was bombed by the communists in August 1975 have reunited in Malaysia after 46 years. Photo: The Star/Kamarul Ariffin
The iconic Tugu Negara, a monument in Kuala Lumpur that remembers and recognises the sacrifices of British, Malaysian, Commonwealth and other international military personnel in the two World Wars and the Malayan Emergency, was badly damaged when it was bombed by the communists on Aug 26, 1975.
The Malaysian government at the time commissioned Australian art lecturer and sculptor Christopher Carney, who was working at Institut Teknologi Mara (ITM /UiTM) back then to help restore the monument.
A group of young art graduates – Abdul Mansoor Ibrahim, Abdul Mukti Jantan and Zolkeply Maulana – who were his former students in the sculpture class were handpicked by Carney to assist in the restoration works.
Carney, who offered his services, was awarded the job by the government on the strength of his skills and experience.
The restoration was completed a year and a week later, in April 1977.
Tugu Negara was subsequently opened to the public on May 11 that year.
The cost of the restoration, according to a report in The Star (May 1977) was estimated at RM1mil, with nearly RM1.3mil received from the general public through a restoration fund.
The four men, who rebuilt the damaged parts of Tugu Negara, then went their separate ways, without realising that they had forever left their mark in history.
Today, they met again after 46 years, to revisit the site and reminisce about the challenging times working on the historical monument.
The reunion was mooted two years ago but the pandemic delayed the plans. It finally came into place in the last few months. The men said the meet-up in Kuala Lumpur had to be coordinated well as Mufti resides in Los Angeles, while Carney lives in Port Huon, Tasmania.
A fallen soldier from the Tugu Negara monument after it was bombed in 1975 by the communists. Photo: Handout
“The rebuilding of Tugu Negara was important as it is part of the nation’s history,” said Carney, 74, at a media event in the Royal Lake Club before a site visit to Tugu Negara.
“It is for this reason that my association with Tugu Negara is special and it is the most important work I’ve been involved with'' he added.
As someone with experience in sculpting and foundry, Carney possessed the necessary skills to be able to restore what was originally built in 1966 by the renowned Austrian-born American sculptor Felix de Weldon (who constructed the Iwo Jima Memorial in the US in 1954).
The amount of damage to Tugu Negara caused by the bombings however required extra help, to which he selected three of his students.
"They were bright, resourceful and had the ability to problem solve," said Carney.
Despite having no experience in welding with bronze ingots, the three graduates were ready for this important national duty.
When they inspected the aftermath of the bombing at Tugu Negara in 1975, they realised the damage was extensive.
Not only were there cracks, holes or breaks in the bronze, there were huge broken chunks of the monument that they needed to weld the pieces back together. If there were missing parts, they needed to cast new pieces.
"Of the seven figures only the one holding the flag was intact. The rest were strewn all over the ground, some missing a face, an ankle, soldiers without a leg and various broken body parts," recalled Carney.
As artists, they believed they had the talent and dedication to get the job done.
Through the months of repair work, the team, guided by Carney, persevered through unfamiliar situations. This coupled with the faith they had in Carney made them believe they could do anything.
“With Mr Carney ... no problem!” they said in unison, cheering on their former teacher.
Zolkeply (middle) and a group of welders from Jabatan Kerja Raya (Public Works Department) are seen at the top of the Tugu Negara in 1975. Photo: Handout
Working on such an important project was an unforgettable experience for all of them.
"We also had to use our own moulds to restore the parts which were broken. For example, to repair the stomach area, you needed to cast new pieces to fill the broken part and then weld the parts together," said Mufti.
He also recalled a memorable experience on the job.
"It was climbing up the highest figure with Zolkeply and Ah Sung, a welder from Jabatan Kerja Raya (Public Works Department), to arc weld the hat on the soldier," said Mufti, 73.
He also took the opportunity to imprint their names on it.
“That was the moment I realised we had completed the job with pride and honour. And I finally understood what it meant to finally graduate from ITM with what I had been taught and given the opportunity to do something others could not.” he said.
With the Tugu Negara monument standing 15m tall, the only way to view these imprints now would be via drone.
For Abdul Mansoor, 71, he still marvels at how they had worked on the bronze monument without the proper equipment, protective attire and safety measures to prevent any untoward accidents.
"We had taken a big risk, but it was worth it," he said.
A young Christopher Carney works on restoring the bombed monument.
Zolkeply, 69, did it for his father, a policeman attached to the General Operations Force to handle the communist insurgency. To his joy his father made a surprise visit at the site to see his son’s handiwork.
“I really enjoyed every minute of the work and it did not matter whether we were paid or not,” said Zolkeply, who remembers the team of young art graduates got paid RM600 a month to repair Tugu Negara.
“I felt honoured to be given the chance to repair the damaged parts of the figures on the monument,” he added.
Besides visiting their old UiTM campus in Shah Alam tomorrow, they have been invited by Galeri Seni Tuanku Nur Zahirah (GESTURZ) for a dialogue with students and lecturers.
Tugu Negara is currently under renovation till December and will be open to the public in January 2024.
