The Straw Hat flag has become a symbol of rebellion in Asia.
Photo Credit: @animespotlightt via X
AMID growing frustrations with corruption and censorship in the government, youths across Asia have adopted a new symbol of defiance: an anime pirate flag. The flag, popularised by the anime and manga series One Piece, depicts a skull with a straw hat and crossbones, and has become a flag of protest for youths in Nepal, Indonesia, and the Philippines, along with other countries.
Belonging to the Straw Hat Pirates in the One Piece story, the flag has in recent months been popping up in the aforementioned countries – in doorways, on balconies, painted on the walls, and on the backs of cars – as a symbol of protest and resistance amid simmering tensions.
Ahead of Indonesia’s Independence Day, August 17, the president, Prabowo Subianto, called for Indonesians to fly their red-and-white flag. Instead, many Indonesians raised the Straw Hat flag in the streets.
Now, the protests are in full force, spreading across Asia against the corruption, censorship, and authoritarian governments. The flag, appearing in protests across the continent, is being wholeheartedly adopted as a symbol of Gen Z’s unrest.
The Japanese series One Piece, created by Eiichiro Oda and originating in 1997, is one of the most successful franchises of all time and is the best-selling manga series of all time, with more than 516.6 million copies sold. Over its more than 1,100 episodes, the story follows a crew of pirates, along with their starry-eyed captain, Monkey D. Luffy, sailing around the world in search of a legendary treasure. The long-running series, yet unfinished, famously deals with themes of corruption, resisting oppressors, and standing up for what is right. The Straw Hat flag has, in recent years, become a worldwide symbol of defiance, not only in the aforementioned countries, but on a global scale.
