The beautiful meaning contained in the Ambon Peace Gong Monument

A humanitarian tragedy in Ambon in 1999 will never be forgotten from the memories of the entire
Indonesian nation to this day. The deep sense of pain over the emotional futility that occurred in
Ambonese society at that time is still felt. In fact, these riots with SARA nuances have become an
embarrassing disgrace for the Indonesian nation in the eyes of the world and the development of
human civilization. A dark portrait of the weak awareness of tolerance between different elements in
society is reflected in this incident, even though throughout history the Indonesian nation has been
known as a friendly nation, full of tolerance and mutual respect between its residents.

The sad incident in 1999 certainly left a very painful wound on this great nation, especially the people of
Ambon. Finally, with the remaining awareness of peace, the people of Ambone are struggling to recover
from the decline in tolerance between residents. After the reform period began, little by little the people
of Ambon began to reorganize their civilization with an attitude of tolerance that had almost
disappeared. Development is finally going well, the people have found their positive lifestyle again, they
can even mingle between different groups again even though feelings of suspicion and wariness are still
felt in their minds.

In this case, the Indonesian government does not want to remain silent. Various efforts to restore life in
Ambon were carried out. One clear proof of the hard efforts made by the government at that time was
the construction of a giant gong monument entitled "World Peace Gong". This large monument is right
in the center of activity in the city of Ambon which was destroyed by the SARA riots in 1999. This
monument is located in Taman Pelita which is right in the middle of the busy center of Ambon. The
World Peace Gong Monument was inaugurated on November 25 2009 by the 6th President of
Indonesia, Mr Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. Since its inauguration, this park has always been busy with
local residents and tourists as a place to relax or even as a location that is considered good as a photo
object.

The World Peace Gong in Ambon is about 2 meters in diameter. The surface contains images of national
flags from all over the world, the center also contains symbols of several major religions in the world
such as Muslim, Christian, Hindu, Buddhist and others. This gong is at a height, and to reach it we have
to climb several stairs. Apart from that, as the main complement, the Pancasila symbol is clearly visible
at the top of the gong support and explains that Pancasila is the true ideology of the Indonesian nation.
It should also be noted that similar Peace Gongs have been spread throughout the world. It is said that
this Peace Gong in Ambon is the 35th.
It turns out that Ambon Island not only contains beautiful natural scenery, the dark history of this city
has also taught the present and future generations to better understand the meaning of tolerance for
the sake of creating world peace in accordance with the 1945 Constitution. The World Peace Gong
Monument is a a form of self-reflection by the nation regarding how tolerance in the state should be
implemented. Through this monument, it is hoped that future generations of Indonesians will be able to
create a better living civilization than their predecessors.This gong is also surrounded by 200 images of
flags from various countries and is supported by two giant pillars, and at the top of the pillars is the
Pancasila symbol.