Imu and the Gorosei's origins in One Piece could be inspired by Argentina's brutal Peron Regime

One Piece is filled with inspiration from every media source, be it from a novel series or the mythology of some ancient religion. The series could be considered a lecture on cultural studies once a fan takes a deep dive into every character.

One such character that could be inspired by different mythologies is the Ruler of the World Government, Imu. As speculated by fans, Imu could be inspired by the main antagonist of the Lord of the Rings or even by an old film from the antagonist of One Piece, thus clouding their character much more than it already is.

Another inspiration behind the character of the Ruler of the World Government could be from the real world. Imu could be inspired by former President Juan Domingo Peron, and one of the acts of this person could give a proper reason as to why the Five Elders have sided with the Ruler of the World Government.

Disclaimer: Any opinions expressed in this article solely belong to the author.

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One Piece: Exploring the connection between Imu and Juan Domingo Peron

Imu, as seen in the anime (Image via Toei Animation)

Imu is the Supreme Leader of the World Government and one of the most mysterious characters in One Piece, who sits on the Empty Throne. Imu is the absolute being who scares even the Five Elders who work under them. Despite the numerous inspirations behind this character, as speculated by fans, their story in the series could be similar to Juan Domingo Peron.

Juan Domingo Peron is the former President of Argentina. The special thing about his government was that he alone acted as the majority of political titles, like Minister of Social Affairs and Minister of War, while acting as the active President of Argentina.

The Ancient Kingdom, as seen in the anime (Image via Toei Animation)

He was elected President twice, in 1946-55 and 1973-74. This makes him similar to Imu, who could have been entitled to some political positions during the Void Century in the Ancient Kingdom and again elected as the highest authority after being the Ruler of the World Government.

What connects this President to Imu is the ideology the former established during this time as the President, which went by the name Peronism. Peronism has three pillars, which, when combined, form Justicialism.

The three pillars are:

• Economic independence (not depending on other countries).
• Social justice (fight against injustice).
• Political sovereignty (no interference of the outside world in the country's domestic affairs).

On the outside, these three pillars are what became the foundation of the World Government in One Piece, but on the inside, almost everyone is corrupted.

King Cobra's death as seen in the manga (Image via Shueisha)

Moreover, even though Peron was considered an honest man, he was also as much of a tyrant man who couldn't listen to anything against him. He would sentence anyone to jail or even death if they dared to speak against him, a behavior similar to Imu, who killed King Cobra after he tried to question Imu's origins.

One of the most questionable acts during Juan Domingo Peron's era was that he provided the Nazi warlords a place to stay inside his country Argentina through escape routes called ratlines. This could be a reference to the Five Elders as, just like the Nazi warlords, to stay hidden from the eyes of the world, the Five Elders were given a place to stay by Imu.

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The end of Peron's first era

The Revolutionary Army as seen in the anime (Image via Toei Animation)

Peron's first era as the President of Argentina ended through a coup d'état (overthrowing the government of a leader by some other minor parties). Peron's government was overthrown by a party called the Liberating Revolution. The members of this party exposed Peron's illegal acts of betrayal towards his country.

Similar to the Liberating Revolution, a group of individuals exists in One Piece, known as the Revolutionary Army. This group is under the leadership of Monkey D Dragon, who aims to go against the World Government, just as the Liberating Revolution went against Peron.

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