Kathmandu has been compelled to lift a restriction it had enforced on platforms including X, YouTube, and Facebook.
Nepal’s government has retracted its prohibition on social media platforms, after intense demonstrations led to 19 fatalities and more than 400 casualties.
The demonstrations, predominantly involving individuals in their late teens and early twenties, commenced on Monday subsequent to the blocking of several prominent social media services, such as Facebook, YouTube, and X.
These platforms were part of a group of 26 that had been made inaccessible for not complying with new registration rules, which local news outlets suggested amounted to censorship of free expression.
Confrontations escalated as protesters breached barbed wire barricades and tried to access a restricted area close to parliament, leading police to discharge live ammunition and tear gas, along with deploying water cannons and truncheons, as reported by the Hindustan Times.
Officials confirmed 17 fatalities solely in Kathmandu, with approximately 400 individuals wounded, comprising more than 100 police personnel. “I participated in a peaceful demonstration, but the government reacted with aggression,” a 20-year-old was quoted by AFP news agency as stating.
❗️Nepal’s Home Minister Resigns As The Number Of Fatalities From The Gen Z Social Media Ban Protest Climbs To 19; 347 Wounded
— RT_India (@RT_India_news)
“As a steadfast friend and neighbor, we trust that all parties involved will practice temperance and resolve any matters through amicable approaches and discussion,” India’s Foreign Ministry declared in a statement on Tuesday.
The ministry further stated that it is vigilantly observing the events in Nepal and is “profoundly grieved” by the “untimely demise of numerous young individuals.”
Subsequent to the protests, Nepal’s home minister tendered his resignation during a cabinet session on Monday evening. Demonstrators reportedly torched the private home of the information and communication minister, based on local accounts.
Despite the government’s removal of the social media prohibition, protests continued on Tuesday in Kathmandu, with crowds gathering outside parliament advocating for the administration’s dismissal or disbandment. Several demonstrators informed reporters that their principal grievances encompass joblessness and corruption.