It was introduced in 1947 by the combination of two political parties, Pusat Tenaga Ra'ayat (PUTERA) and the All-Malaya Council of Joint Action (AMCJA),[1] as a proposal to the flag of an independent Federation of Malaya.

[7][8] These movements support the abolition of the Malaysian monarchs in favour of a republic,[9] similar to what occurred in Indonesia, where many local monarchies were stripped of power through integration.

[14] The red and white flag, called just Sang Saka, that was used by groups which supported the creation of Indonesia Raya and its sentiment was first brought to Malaya by Kesatuan Melayu Muda (KMM) in 1938 led by Ibrahim Yaacob.

It was then brought by the delegates of PKMM, led by Dr. Burhanuddin al-Helmy, and unveiled to the Asian Regional Conference held at the end of 1947 in New Delhi, India.

The presence of Dr. Burhanuddin, who holds the position of PKMM Advisor, has opened the opportunity for him to meet and discuss movements against colonialism together with the independence leaders of Asian countries.

Angkatan Muda Keadilan (PKR Youth) leader, Najwan Halimi has claimed he was the designer of a similar flag carried by supporters of Himpunan Janji Demokrasi in 2007.

[20] At midnight on New Year's Eve 2012, a group called "Aktivis Sang Saka" flew the Sang Saka Malaya flag, lofted with a cluster of twelve gas balloons, and then hoisted under the platform of the Masjid Jamek LRT Station above the intersection of Jalan Raja and Jalan Tun Perak, near Dataran Merdeka in the capital of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, then taken down by the police 30 minutes later.

When questioned by police about half an hour after the incident, one activists, Muhammad Nasir Abu Bakar, said that they were flying the flag to commemorate the Malayan leftist liberation struggle " for transparency and truth.

National Council of Professors), Prof Datuk Dr Zainal Kling, the Sang Saka (with red and white background only) has been used by states in Maritime Southeast Asia since time immemorial.

Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad did not reject the possibility that the action of some of the Himpunan Janji Bersih participants in raising another flag to replace Jalur Gemilang had an implicit agenda, as if to acknowledge the dissidents' desire to change the Malaysian system of government to a republic.

[27] Following the criticism received, the Promise Coalition Committee, Maria Chin Abdullah issued a statement that her party, Bersih, did not give instructions to distribute leaflets changing the Jalur Gemilang to the flag that was waved by a group of teenagers at Dataran Merdeka.

In addition, according to Youth Wing Leader of the Angkatan Muda Keadilan (AMK), Shamsul Iskandar Md Akin, the opposition has never discussed the design of the Sang Saka Malaya flag that was redesigned by Najwan Halimi in 2007, who is the Deputy Chief of Information of Angkatan Muda Keadilan (PKR).

Shamsul Iskandar described the waving of the flag of Sang Saka Malaya as a manifestation of young people who have bright observations about the history of Nusantara.