Tension continues to grip Nepal on Tuesday as fresh protests erupted in several parts of the country, a day after the Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli government revoked a ban on social media to address the “demand of Gen-Z.” A curfew was imposed in several parts of the country, including the capital Kathmandu, after demonstrators pelted stones and marched on the streets for the second consecutive day.
Police quickly tried to push back the protesters, but appeared not to be using any force. “Punish the murderers in government. Stop killing children,” the protesters chanted while police used loudspeakers urging them to return home.
The protesters’ anger was seen turning toward the government led by PM Khadga Prasad Oli, who has increasingly become unpopular. Since Monday, two ministers of the Oli government have resigned, as demonstrators have sought the Prime Minister’s dismissal.
Protestors have also vandalised the house of Former Nepali Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal alias Prachanda. The house of Energy Minister Deepak Khadka was also damaged as protesters set it on fire. Protesters have also taken over former PM Sher Bahadur Deuba’s residence.
“We are here to protest because our youths and friends are getting killed, we are here to seek that justice is done and the present regime is ousted. KP Oli should be chased away,” said Narayan Acharya, who was among the protesters outside the battered wall of the parliament building on Tuesday, told Associated Press.
“We need to protest the killings of so many young ones and students, aimed directly at their heads by this Hitler-like KP Oli’s government. As long as this government is in power, the people like us will continue to suffer,” said Durganah Dahal, another protester.
Nepali Congress General Secretary Gagan Thapa has also called on Prime Minister Oli to take moral responsibility for the deaths of 19 protesters during the demonstrations and to resign from his post.
What Led To Protests
Several widely used social networks, including Facebook, X and YouTube, were blocked in the Himalayan nation last week after failing to comply with a new requirement to register and submit to government oversight. Monday’s rallies against the ban swelled to tens of thousands of people in Kathmandu, and crowds surrounded the Parliament building before police opened fire on the demonstrators.
“Stop the ban on social media. Stop corruption, not social media,” the crowds chanted, waving national flags. Monday’s rally was called the protest of Gen Z, which generally refers to people born between 1995 and 2010.
