After protests around the country, the government of Nepal has decided to lift its recent ban on social media sites. The decision comes after days of violent protests led by young people and known as the “Gen-Z” movement, which left 19 people dead and more than 300 hurt. The protests started because of the prohibition, but they grew because people were angry about government corruption and “nepo kids” showing off their fancy lives online.
The restriction, which started last Friday, made it unable to access 26 social media sites, such as Facebook, X, and YouTube, which are very popular. The government said it was cracking down on the enterprises because they hadn’t followed new rules that said they had to register in Nepal, hire a local representative, and set up a grievance and compliance officer.
But the ban was met with strong and instant opposition. Thousands of young people, many of whom were students, marched through the streets of Kathmandu and other cities, shouting slogans against corruption and calling for an end to what they viewed as government authoritarianism. The protests swiftly became violent when protestors broke over police barriers and sought to get into the parliament building. The large number of deaths was caused by the police using water cannons, tear gas, batons, and even live bullets. Reports say that at least 17 of the deaths happened in Kathmandu alone.
A lot of people have called the protests a “youth-led revolution,” but they weren’t just about the ban on social media. “We are protesting against corruption that has become part of the system in Nepal,” said Yujan Rajbhandari, a 24-year-old student. The popular “Nepo Kids” fad on sites like TikTok (which wasn’t blocked and still up and running) was a big reason for the protests. This trend included videos and posts that compared the problems of regular Nepalis with the lavish lives of politicians’ children, which made people angry and upset.
Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak quit on Monday, which shows how the government is dealing with the rising instability. Prithvi Subba Gurung, the Minister for Communication, Information, and Broadcasting, said later that night that the restriction will be lifted. Gurung said he had told the authorities in charge to “resume social media sites as per the demands of Gen Z, which led the huge protest.”
There is still a lot of tension in Kathmandu, and a curfew is in place in certain important parts of the capital. Both the United Nations and Amnesty International have asked for a quick and open investigation into the use of force by security personnel. The UN rights office said there were “deeply worrying allegations of unnecessary or disproportionate use of force.”
The government’s swift change of heart about the social media ban is a big deal for Nepal’s young people, who used collective action to get the policy changed.