For more than a century since 1895, the Pudu Prison or also known as the Pudu Jail served as one of Kuala Lumpur’s main prisons. Built in phases between 1891 and 1895 by the British colonial government, the prison was notorious for its harsh environment, only equipped with small cells with a window only the size of a shoebox.
A few months after its completion, in August 1895, a cholera outbreak struck the prison and killed a few hundred inmates. Later, it was found that the plague was caused by the prison’s water supply system, which relied on an old well belonging to the Chinese cemetery previously on the site.
During the Japanese occupation from 1941 to 1945, the prison was used to incarcerate Allied POWs. After the war, it housed many death-row prisoners and drug offenders, who were often caned and executed.
In 1984, an inmate named Khong Yen Chong used some 2,000 litres of paint to create an impressive mural of tropical scenes. It measured some 860 feet by 14 feet and was mentioned in the Guinness Book of Records as the longest mural in the world. Khong, as an inmate, was not able to complete the mural. He returned later as a free man and volunteered his time to complete his masterpiece.
As when we are heading towards the new millennium and Kuala Lumpur city is developing at a fast pace, concerns were raised about the viability of the prison’s location on prime real estate. Security was a major issue due to the prison’s proximity to fast-rising commercial developments such as Imbi and Bukit Bintang. Additionally, the prison layout and facilities had become obsolete.
Photo by Amri Daud
Photo by Amri Daud
In 1996, after 101 years as a prison, Pudu Prison was formally closed and the inmates were moved to Sungai Buloh Prison and Kajang Prison. It continued to be used until 2009 as a day-holding facility for prisoners attending court hearings. It was used as a museum for a period in 1997.
Eventually in 1996, the government decided to demolish it in phases to make space for redevelopment. The prison complex was completely demolished by December 2012, remaining only the main gate and a portion of the exterior preserved at the request of heritage conservationists.
Today, the prison gate stands on the edge of a fountain park, part of the surroundings of the Bukit Bintang City Centre development.
