The Monocle Minute

The generosity and warmth of Filipinos are the first things that strike you on a visit to their country. It can take days for a grimmer reality to sink in: the Philippines is armed to the teeth. Security guards with huge semiautomatic weapons stand outside shopping malls in Manila. By huge, I mean huge. How qualified are these gunslingers to be holding assault rifles in public?

I have been aware of the country’s high security levels for almost 20 years. On my first trip to Boracay, I was a little surprised to learn that my charming waiter was moonlighting as an armed guard on the beach. Until my latest trip, I hadn’t been back to the Philippines since 2019. In my absence, the guns seem to have become bigger and more numerous.

This is the first time that I have noticed the booth at the airport’s Terminal 3 for handing in guns before dropping off departing family and friends. The country has had a problem with kidnappings and killings in the past. Though such crimes now occur less frequently, the state of alarm remains. Entry into hotels requires an airport-style screening and the first greeting for arriving guests comes in the form of armed guards shining a mirrored stick under your taxi. Shocking, right? Wrong. The response I receive from locals is, “You should see what it’s like in America.”

The US continues to exert a strong influence on its former colony. Its secretary of state, Antony Blinken, and defence secretary, Lloyd Austin, are in town this week, while well-fed American soldiers in combat fatigues dominate five-star hotel lobbies. New graduates are returning from US universities with a burning desire to make their hometown more liveable. But among the clamour for bike lanes, walkable neighbourhoods and clean air, there are few calls to address the Philippines’ gun culture. Jakarta and Bangkok have a similar set-up but the presence of these weapons is far subtler in those cities. Arm the police if you have to. Officers in Hong Kong carry discreet sidearms. Some of Metro Manila’s residents clearly like the sight of these private militias but it’s not the right look for a country that’s serious about attracting overseas talent and tourism from anywhere outside the US.

James Chambers is Monocle’s Asia editor. For more opinion, analysis and insight, subscribe to Monocle today.

Operators of Italy’s beach clubs, also known as bagni, have threatened to go on strike after being forced to give up their concessions. With some businesses planning to close for two-to-four-hour stretches across multiple days in August, beachgoers are likely to face plenty of disruption.

Beach clubs have long been big business in Italy but many have begun to criticise their operating model. Almost all of Italy’s 30,000 management concessions were granted decades ago, often for very little money, and most of these have been automatically renewed. The EU insists that they should be put up for tender. Italy’s previous government attempted to extend the concessions until 2033 but the European Court of Justice overruled it. Operators complain that after investing in their businesses for generations, they could lose their ventures overnight. They are now fighting to hold on to their place in the sun.

For more on the disruption faced by Italian beachgoers, tune in to ‘The Globalist’ on Monocle Radio from 07.00 London time.

Japan is tightening its rules for rideable luggage. Initially designed to whisk people through airports and train stations at about 10km/h, these suitcases with built-in electric motors are increasingly being misused by tourists on public roads. The country has reclassified them alongside motorcycles with 50cc engines or smaller. They must now be registered and riders are required to wear helmets and have a valid licence to use them on roads.

New contraptions of this kind are the result of developments in motor and battery technologies, and their popularity has been fuelled by social media. In 2023, Japan revised its electric-scooter legislation following a spike in road accidents. Major airports such as Narita have since pleaded with travellers to keep mini-scooters off terminal floors. With a record 17.7 million foreigners visiting Japan in the first half of 2024 and a wide array of electric gadgets emerging on its streets, the country is facing the difficult challenge of managing the use of these fun yet potentially hazardous modes of transport.

Creating a visual identity for the Olympics and Paralympics is no easy task. Monocle’s team of correspondents in Paris explores how it all came together for this year’s Games.

1. The Olympic torch and cauldron
There’s perhaps no item that embodies the Games more than the Olympic torch. Its design must be both symbolic and functional. “I wanted to keep it looking as though it was sculpted in the solid materials,” Mathieu Lehanneur, the designer of this year’s torch, tells Monocle Radio. “I also wanted to make a flying cauldron that could be visible from everywhere in Paris.” His vision for this year’s Games took the form of a ring of fire suspended from a hot-air balloon. “It’s a play on the history of Les Tuileries and the Montgolfier brothers. It’s important that the torch and cauldron embody a part of the location.”

2. Pictograms
“You have to respect Paris in order to create a visual identity for the Games,” says Joachim Roncin, head of design for the Paris Olympics and Paralympics. Roncin saw the opportunity to create a fresh look for this year’s event through its pictograms. The icons are a departure from the usual simplified depictions of every sport. Instead, they offer a more graphic representation of the events through clean lines and geometric shapes.

3. Medals
This year’s medallists will take a unique part of France’s capital with them: a piece of the Eiffel Tower. Organisers called upon LVMH-owned jewellery house Chaumet to design this year’s medals, which contain fragments of the iconic landmark in the shape of a hexagon at their centre. As the first jeweller in the history of the Games to be tasked with creating the awards, Chaumet prioritised making them representative of France’s rich heritage.

Tune in to our new programme,‘Monocle in Paris’, every weekday at 08.00 London time (09.00 CET) on Monocle Radio for live specials and unmissable coverage throughout the Olympics.

Robert Prendergast heads to Helsinki to learn about the city’s culinary traditions.