A pirate flag from the Japanese manga One Piece has leapt off comic pages to city streets, appearing at political protests across Asia. The skull-and-crossbones design, topped with a straw hat, is now being raised by demonstrators in countries such as Indonesia, Nepal and the Philippines.
Protesters say the symbol embodies resistance to corruption, authoritarianism and censorship. Its adoption highlights how a fictional emblem has been reinterpreted as a real-world banner of dissent, especially among younger generations.
