Three-finger salute (pro-democracy)

Origins

The three-finger salute gained widespread recognition in the 2010s from The Hunger Games, a fictional series by Suzanne Collins. It shares similarities with older gestures like the Scout sign and the Ukrainian salute based on the Tryzub symbol, but whether these influenced Collins is unknown. In the story, the salute involves pressing the left hand’s three middle fingers to the lips, then raising them. It first appears when District 12 residents salute Katniss Everdeen after she volunteers for the Hunger Games in her sister’s place. Later, during a victors’ tour in the second installment, an elderly man salutes her this way, and the gesture, along with the mockingjay song, becomes a revolutionary symbol.

Asian democracy movements

The salute first became a real-world pro-democracy symbol after the 2014 Thai coup d'état, leading the military to announce that anyone displaying it would be arrested and that the symbol was made illegal in Thailand. Protesters added symbolism, stating the three fingers stand for liberty, equality, fraternity. It was revived in the 2020–2021 Thai protests. In response to the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, about 200 Burmese expatriates and some Thai pro-democracy activists protested at the Burmese embassy in Bangkok, with some showing the salute; the protest ended with a police crackdown, injuries, and arrests.

The salute was used during the Umbrella Movement in 2014 and revived in the 2019–2020 Hong Kong protests, inspired by its renewed usage in Thailand, to symbolize resistance against the Chinese government. It also became a symbol of opposition to the 2021 Myanmar coup and subsequent civil war, launched on social media with celebrities like Paing Takhon and Dave Leduc joining. Mu Sochua, former vice president of the Cambodia National Rescue Party, called on supporters to adopt the symbol in solidarity with Myanmar and as a protest against the government of Hun Sen and the Cambodian People's Party; a CPP representative condemned the actions.

Other uses

In preparation for the 2024 presidential election, the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) supported presidential candidate Ganjar Pranowo adopted all black attire and the three-finger salute as his campaign motif and hand gesture, aligned with his and the party's ballot number. On 20 February 2023, a video on his Twitter account showed Ganjar raising his hands in the salute amidst a crowd dressed in all black, with captions stating it was about Indonesia and that the salute signified three promises: obey God, abide by the law, and be loyal to the people.

This was a departure from the PDI-P's Sign of the horns salute associated with President Joko Widodo's administration. The thaw in relations between Widodo and his party, following a constitutional court ruling allowing Widodo's eldest son as Prabowo Subianto's running mate and involving the Chief Justice, was seen as the reason for the change. Observers viewed the salute as an act of resistance against unfair democratic processes. After Ganjar's hand symbol reveal, the Ministry of Home Affairs reminded civil servants to refrain from using hand symbolism related to presidential candidates, with consequences including firing, to ensure neutrality during the 2024 general election.

Similar gestures

The three-finger salute from The Hunger Games is visually similar to the Scout sign, which has represented the three parts of the Scout Promise since 1908. It also resembles a Ukrainian three-fingered hand gesture, performed with spread fingers, that symbolizes the Tryzub. This Ukrainian salute appeared in pro-independence protests during the late 1980s and in the logo of the nationalist Svoboda party.