A social media ban that triggered violent clashes in Nepal has finally been lifted, but a curfew is now in place in several parts of the country, including Kathmandu. The development came hours after protestors clashed with cops, leading to 19 deaths and over 300 people getting injured.
Apart from the ban on several social media sites, including Facebook, Instagram and YouTube, the protest was also triggered by alleged corruption in the country.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli urged people not to hold demonstrations, and said that the government was also not in favour of the social media ban.
Here are key developments on the protests:
Curfews timings: Curfews are reportedly in place for several areas in Nepal’s Kathmandu, Lalitpur and Bhaktapur. In Lalitpur, the curfew is in place till midnight today, and while the curfew started at 8:30 am this morning in Kathmandu and Bhaktapur, there is no information on when it will end, The Kathmandu Post reported.
What is not allowed? The curfews have been imposed under Section 6(3) of the Local Administration Act, 1971, and prohibits any sit-ins, demonstrations, processions and rallies, etc. The development comes a day after violent clashes killed 19 people in the country amid an outcry on alleged corruption and a social media ban.
Social media ban lifted: Facebook, YouTube and X were among the 26 social media platforms banned in Nepal, but the government later withdrew the ban. Earlier in July, the government had banned the Telegram messaging app, and there was a nine-month ban on TikTok before that, till August last year.
Nepal PM reacts: Amid unrest in the country, Nepal PM KP Sharam Oli issued a statement, urging people not to hold demonstrations. “While we were confident that our children will peacefully voice their demands, the situation that arose due to the infiltration of the protest by various vested interests has resulted in the tragic loss of lives of citizens…,” Oli said, adding the government never favoured a ban on social media.
‘Our PM is worst of all’: One of the key triggers behind the widespread protests in Nepal was alleged corruption. Those protesting, mostly the youth, allege that corruption is rampant in the country, with one of them calling PM Oli “the worst”. “The main leaders of the country and their supporting parties and people under them are involved in the corruption… Our PM is one of the worst of all… Students only demand that corruption be stopped, but they are being shot,” a protestor was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.
Aftermath of violent protests: At least 19 people were killed and over 300 were injured in violent protests in different parts of Nepal on Monday. Protestors circled the Parliament and pushed through barbed wires, and cops fired tear gas and water cannons at them.
Why TikTok skipped ban? While several popular social media sites like Facebook, YouTube, X, etc saw a ban in Nepal, TikTok, a ByteDance-owned Chinese application, did not. This is because it was one of the companies that registered itself under the new rules in the country.
Some social media sites were banned in Nepal last week because they had failed to register with the government, amid a crackdown on fake IDs, misinformation and hate speech.
