Protests erupt in Nepal leaving 19 people dead after major social media ban

Protesters were ferrying the injured to hospital on motorcycles.

Some people taking part in the demonstrations forced their way into the parliament complex in the capital city of Kathmandu by breaking through a barricade, a local official said.

The unrest follows a government decision last week to block access to several social media platforms, including Facebook, sparking anger among many young people.

Local media reported Instagram, WhatsApp, Snapchat, Pinterest and X have also been banned.

Officials said they imposed the ban because platforms had failed to register with authorities in a crackdown on misuse, including false social media accounts used to spread hate speech and fake news, and commit fraud.

Two of the 19 people were killed when protests in the eastern city of Itahari turned violent, police said.

Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli called an emergency cabinet meeting to discuss the unrest, which erupted after thousands of young people, including many wearing their school or college uniforms, took to the streets.

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Many carried flags and placards with slogans such as "shut down corruption and not social media," "unban social media," and "youths against corruption" as they marched through Kathmandu.

Organisers of the protests, which spread to other cities in the Himalayan country, have called them "demonstrations by Gen Z."

They say the protests reflect young people's widespread frustration with the government's perceived lack of action to tackle corruption and boost economic opportunities.

International nonprofit organisation Human Rights Watch said the government of Nepal should avoid perceiving these protests primarily through a law enforcement perspective and recognise that they instead reflect deep frustrations felt throughout Nepal with entrenched corruption, nepotism, and poor governance.

“Nonviolent means should be utilised before resorting to force," it said in a statement.

"The use of force is only appropriate if other measures to address a genuine threat have proved ineffective.”

Police had orders to use water cannons, batons and rubber bullets to control the crowd and the army was deployed in the parliament area to bolster law enforcement officers, Muktiram Rijal, a spokesperson for the Kathmandu district office, said.

Violence eased later in the evening, though protesters remained in the area outside parliament.