parties, press, trade unions, religious, social and professional groups in Malaysia. The council was tasked to discuss and propose solutions on issues regarding national unity, as well as formulating positive and practical guidelines that encourages national integration and racial unity to build a shared national identity amongst Malaysians. Discussions on the Rukun Negara had been made on the council's second meeting, with its members providing suggestions to the draft prepared by the Department of National Unity and its Research Advisory Group. A committee on Rukun Negara, chaired by Tun Tan Siew Sin, was formed on the same meeting. Other members of the committee includes Ghazali Shafie, Syed Hussein Alatas and Datuk Harun Idris. Aside from the initial 12 members, several individuals had also attended the council's meeting and contributed to the drafting of Rukun Negara, which includes former Lord President of the Malaysian Supreme Court, Salleh Abas, and historian Khoo Kay Kim. The first meeting of the committee was held at the Treasury Operations Room, Kuala Lumpur on March 31, 1970, while a second meeting was held on May 17. On the first meeting, a concept known as "Pillars of the Nation" was proposed and was later incorporated into the Rukun Negara, the Pillars were: Ketuhanan (Belief in God or Supreme Being) Kesetiaan (Loyalty) Keadilan (Justice) Kewarganegaraan (Citizenship) Keutuhan (Integrity of the Nation) Kebahagiaan (Well-being) Kesopanan (Canons of Decency) After discussing with its members, the committee submitted a document regarding the Rukun Negara draft to the NCC and NOC for its consideration and approval. The document suggested some changes on the initial draft, such as replacing "Menjujung Perlembagaan" with "Keluhuran Perlembagaan". It was reviewed and discussed by the NCC before it was finally passed by the NOC on 13 August 1970 after some modifications. Declaration The Rukun Negara was declared officially by His Majesty Tuanku Ismail Nasiruddin Shah, the fourth Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia on August 31, 1970, which is the Malaysian Independence Day. The declaration was held on the 13th Independence Day celebration at Dataran Merdeka (formerly known as Selangor Club Padang). The celebration was themed "Muhibbah dan Perpaduan" (Goodwill and Unity) and the government changed the term "Independence Day" (Hari Merdeka) to "National Day" (Hari Kebangsaan) to promote national unity. Promoting the Rukun Negara On September 2, 1970, a meeting on the distribution of Rukun Negara was held in the Parliament Building. The meeting was presided by