- Protests led by Young held in capital and other cities.
- Protesters condemn the shutdown of social media, corruption.
- The police fiery gas and rubber balls on protesters.
Kathmandu: Uresters killed at least 19 people in Nepal on Monday, the authorities said when police in the capital fired tear gas and rubber balls against protesters trying to storm parliament in anger over a shutdown on social media and corruption.
Some of the most important youth protesters forced their way into the parliamentary complex of Kathmandu by breaking through a barricade, said a local official who set fire to an ambulance and throws objects on lines with rebel police guarding the legislation.
“The police have fired exclusively,” a demonstrator told Ani News Agency. “(They) fired bullets that missed me, but hit a friend who stood behind me. He was hit in his hand.”
More than 100 people, including 28 police person, received L Medical Treatment for their injuries, police officer Shekhar Khanal told Reuters. Protesters ferryed the wounded o hospital on motorcycles.
Another two people were killed when protests in the eastern city of Itahari became violent, police say.
Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli called an emergency meeting to discuss the turmoil that broke out after thousands of young people, including many wearing their school or college uniforms, walked the streets earlier on Monday.
Many wore flags and posters with slogans such as “Closed Corruption and Not Social Media”, “Unban Social Media” and “Young Against Corruption” as they marched through Kathmandu.
Organizers of the protests, which spread to other cities in the Himalayas, have called them “demonstrations of Gen Z”. They say the protests reflect young people’s widespread frustration over government actions to tackle corruption and increase economic opportunities.
“This is the protest of the new generation in Nepal,” another demonstrator told Ani.
A government’s decision to block access to more social media platforms, including Facebook, last week prompted remorse anger among young people. About 90% of Nepals 30 million people use the Internet.
Officials said they introduced the ban because platforms had not registered with the authorities in a crash on abuse, including false social media accounts used to spread hatred speech and false news, and commit fraud.
Batons and rubber balls
Police had orders to use water cannons, batons and rubber balls to control the crowd, and the army was deployed in the parliamentary area to strengthen law enforcement authorities, Muktiram Rijal, a spokesman for Kathmandu District Office, Reuters said.
He said that the curfew that will remain in effect until 1 p.m. 22 local time, had been expanded to Kathmandus Singha Durbar area, which includes the Prime Minister’s office and other government buildings.
Violence diminished later in the evening, although protesters remained in the area outside parliament.
Police said that similar protests were also held in Biratnagar and Bharatpur in the southern plains and in Pokhara in western Nepal.
Many people in Nepal believe that corruption is violent and the Oli government has been criticized by opponents for not delivering its promises to tackle transplant or make progress to tackle many years of financial issues.
Thousands of young Nepalers travel abroad every year for work and education.
Rameshwore Khanal, a former Financial Secretary, said that although job creation is not up to expectations, it seems that popular anger stems more from accident with government appointments and its inability to pronounce corruption.
Nepal’s shutdown of social media is coming as governments around the world take steps to tighten the supervision of social media and Big Tech due to growing concerns about issues such as wrong information, data protection, online injury and national security.
Critics say many of these measures are at risk of stifling free expression, but regulators say that stricter controls are needed to protect users and maintain social order.
