Gen Z protest in Nepal: Lessons from recent uprisings in South Asia

New Delhi, Sep 8 (IANS) Defiance turned violent in Nepal, leading to deaths as participants taking part in a massive youth protest clashed with security forces on Monday. A movement against nepotism, corruption, and the government's ban on several media apps spilled out on the streets, leading to physical altercations.

The tiny Himalayan country has witnessed several uprisings -- with youth in the forefront -- in the past. Last year, it saw protesters calling for a return to monarchy over a decade and a half after overthrowing the royals in a violent movement.

The demand for a return to the earlier form of governance came after long-lasting political instability, where 13 government changes took place in 16 years.

But it is happening now in the wake of youth movements elsewhere against corruption and nepotism, leading to regime change in South Asian countries like Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

Just like in Nepal, where Gen Z is leading the charge, youth were also at the forefront of the mass movements in Sri Lanka (2022) and Bangladesh (2024).

Gen Z is the term given to the generation born between 1997 and 2012. They are considered the first generation to have largely grown up using modern technology, including the Internet and social media.

In Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, this generation was at the forefront of the uprising. And like Nepal, the stirs in the other two countries were against the government then in power. In all three instances, protests began as being apolitical.

In the initial stages, the uprisings tried to guard against established parties co-opting the struggle.

In Colombo, spiralling fuel and food shortages spurred Gen Z and millennial-led demonstrations. What began as sit-ins grew into large-scale occupations of presidential premises, culminating in President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s resignation.

Protesters later went on to storm the presidential residence and the Prime Minister’s office, which gained international attention for the movement. In the process, informal councils emerged to negotiate demands with authorities.

Many reports suggested the presence of political forces among the protesters, who had their own vested interests.

Since the new government assumed power in 2024, there have been some prominent shifts in policy and governance.

In Bangladesh, students launched mass protests against the then government’s job‐quota policy. Protesters argued the reservation favoured political loyalists over meritocrats.

As demonstrations swelled, security forces responded with force. Protesters ultimately surrounded the prime ministerial residence, prompting Sheikh Hasina to flee the country on August 5, 2024, effectively ending her 16‐year rule.

In the aftermath, student leaders formed the National Citizen Party to contest future elections and joined an interim government overseen by Nobel laureate Dr Muhammad Yunus.

An appointed National Consensus Commission began drafting constitutional and civil‐service reforms, aiming to entrench transparency and curb entrenched patronage networks.

Like Nepal, Bangladesh's stir was driven by digitally savvy young activists who bypassed traditional party structures to organise protests via viral videos and encrypted chats.

Like Sri Lanka, Bangladesh’s students achieved toppling the government through sustained encampments and mass mobilisation.

While Sri Lanka has an elected government now, Bangladesh witnessed a transfer of power to an interim authority, with elections not expected very soon.

Student leaders in Bangladesh rapidly institutionalised their movement into a formal political party; in Kathmandu, Gen Z activists still prioritise leaderless coalitions and incremental policy demands to maintain grassroots authenticity.

Nepal’s Gen Z have explicitly refused to affiliate with existing parties. As evident from the other two unrests, this stand offers both strength and vulnerability.

Thus, considering the subsequent changes in Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte/Colombo and Dhaka, there is a high risk of absorption into party politics.

--IANS

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