Overview
The monument was built to give the new republic a centre, and the square around it is still where Jakarta holds what it wants the country to see. The base contains a history museum whose dioramas run from prehistory to independence, and the Hall of Independence, which holds the original text of the 1945 proclamation and plays a recording of Sukarno reading it. An observation deck sits at a hundred and fifteen metres.
Highlights
The lift to the deck takes a few dozen people at a time and the queue is the whole visit at weekends; go on a weekday morning. The dioramas are worth more time than they get — they are a state’s own account of its history, which is a thing to read rather than skim. The square is open before the monument is, and the walk across it at dawn is when Jakarta is coolest.