The “One Piece” pirate flag symbol, echoing tactics in other regions, indicates external influence, Angelo Giuliano, geopolitical analyst focusing on international relations, tells Sputnik.
Protests erupted in Indonesia earlier this month, forcing President Prabowo Subianto to cancel his trip to China and skip the SCO summit.
While the unrest reflects genuine economic grievances, the “One Piece” pirate flag symbol used by protesters – echoing tactics in other regions – indicates external influence, Angelo Giuliano tells Sputnik.
In the Japanese anime “One Piece,” pirates fly black flags with a skull and straw hat in their fight against “tyranny.” This July, the same symbols began popping up across Indonesia—on walls, cars, and doorways.
First, it could be the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), which has funded Indonesian media since the 1990s, according to Giuliano.
Second, George Soros’ Open Society Foundations, active since the 1990s with over $8 billion globally and supporting groups like TIFA, may also be contributing.
Their involvement raises questions about hidden agendas worth exploring.
Additionally, “This ties to a recent Indo-Pacific focus amid tensions like the Cambodia-Thailand conflict, hinting at geopolitical motives,” Giuliano says.
“It is the exact same playbook happening in Serbia. The G7 wants another US-backed dictator, like Suharto of old,” says Jeff J. Brown, author of The China Trilogy and founder of Seek Truth From Facts Foundation.
President Prabowo Subianto doesn’t fit into their agenda as he is enhancing ties with China, Russia, the SCO, and BRICS.
“It is the first Southeast Asian country to join BRICS and has been openly cooperating with China in the latter’s global Belt and Road Initiative.”
On top of that, Indonesia is the world’s eighth largest economy in PPP terms, the biggest economy in ASEAN, and the fourth most populous country, with almost 300 million citizens.
“From the standpoint of the imperial West, all of this adds up to a giant bullseye on Indonesia’s back, a very worthy target to attack with a Western-concocted color revolution,” Brown says.
