The Straw Hat Pirates' Jolly Roger is one of the flags featured in the Japanese One Piecemanga and its franchise, wherein it is used to identify the Straw Hat Pirates, the pirate crew featuring the series' protagonists, who often fight for liberation of oppressed people. Seeing initial use in pro-Palestinian protests in London and Jakarta related to the Gaza genocide, protesters in Indonesia began using the flag in lieu of the national flag in mid-2025 as a form of protest against the government, and the practice was emulated in other countries, including Nepal, France, and the Philippines.
The flag is a fictional Jolly Roger, depicting a cartoonish skull with two crossbones and a straw hat. In the series, each pirate crew has its own distinct Jolly Roger that reflects its traits and beliefs. Although the flag was originally drawn by Luffy, his poor sketch led Usopp to redesign it.[1]
The flag’s anti-authoritarian usage is a reference to a major storyline involving the fictional World Government, which controls most of the manga’s locations, and the Straw Hat Pirates’ struggles to fight back while subsequently hunting for the titular treasure.[citation needed]
A truck in Jakarta displaying the flag.University of Indonesia students with the flag during their 2025 graduation ceremony.
The Straw Hat Pirates' flag came into prominence during the 2025 Indonesian anti-government protests which started in the weeks leading up to Independence Day on 17 August.[2] President Prabowo Subianto had called on Indonesians to fly the red and white national flag to celebrate the 80th anniversary of the country's independence.[3] Truck drivers began flying the Straw Hat Pirates' flag in late July 2025 to protest mishandlings by the government.[4] They also refused to fly any Indonesian flags, as a part of the demonstration against the prohibition of ODOL (over dimension, overload) trucks throughout several cities in Java, ongoing since 19 June.[5] Trucks of this type will be completely banned for safety reasons from 2027, following an agreement by several ministries and the House of Representatives (DPR).[6]
In response, the flag was called a threat to the national unity of Indonesia by its government,[7] especially by the leading figures from People's Consultative Assembly.[8] It has been also declared a symbol of treason[9] and sedition,[10] while various government institutions, such as the Banten regional police, have attempted to ban this flag.[11][12] Meanwhile, the deputy speaker of DPR Sufmi Dasco Ahmad[13] and West Java governor Dedi Mulyadi found no problem with its raising.[14] Minister of State Secretariat Prasetyo Hadi said that President Prabowo had no issues with protesters raising the flag and considered it as freedom of speech, but urged people not to "compare it to, tarnish it, or put it in conflict with the Red and White flag".[15]
Similar to the 2025 Indonesia protests, the flag has seen use by some protesters in the 2025 Nepalese Gen Z protests as a form of protest against the ban on social media and as a rebellion against the restrictions on consumption of foreign content.[17][18][bettersourceneeded]
During the French anti-government Bloquons tout protests in September 2025 after the fall of the Bayrou government, some protesters carried the flag.[22][19]
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