{"id":212746,"date":"2025-09-09T11:58:12","date_gmt":"2025-09-09T11:58:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/212746\/"},"modified":"2025-09-09T11:58:12","modified_gmt":"2025-09-09T11:58:12","slug":"nepals-prime-minister-oli-quits-after-violent-protests-over-social-media-ban","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/212746\/","title":{"rendered":"Nepal’s Prime Minister Oli quits after violent protests over social media ban"},"content":{"rendered":"

KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) \u2014 Nepal\u2019s prime minister resigned Tuesday as protests against a short-lived ban on social media grew increasingly violent<\/a> and expanded into broader criticism of his government and accusations of corruption among the Himalayan country\u2019s political elite.<\/p>\n

Demonstrations led by young people angry about the blocking of several social media sites gripped the country\u2019s capital<\/a> a day earlier, and police opened fired on the crowds, killing 19 people.<\/p>\n

The ban was lifted Tuesday, but the protests continued<\/a>, with demonstrators setting fire to the homes of some of Nepal\u2019s top leaders and the parliament building. The airport in the capital of Katmandu was shut, and army helicopters ferried some ministers to safe places.<\/p>\n

As the protests intensified, Prime Minister Khadga Prasad Oli<\/a> said he was stepping down immediately.<\/p>\n

The demonstrations \u2014 called the protest of Gen Z \u2014 began after the government blocked platforms, including Facebook, X and YouTube, saying the companies had failed to register<\/a> and submit to government oversight.<\/p>\n

But even after the sites came back online, the rallies continued, fueled by anger over the deaths of protesters at the hands of police and growing frustration with the political elite in the nation wedged between China and India.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Protesters<\/p>\n

Protesters vandalize and burn down Nepalese communist party office during protests against social media ban and corruption in Kathmandu, Nepal, Tuesday, Sept. 9, 2025. (AP Photo\/Niranjan Shrestha)<\/p>\n

Protesters vandalize and burn down Nepalese communist party office during protests against social media ban and corruption in Kathmandu, Nepal, Tuesday, Sept. 9, 2025. (AP Photo\/Niranjan Shrestha)<\/p>\n

Read More<\/p>\n

In particular, many young people are angry that the children of political leaders \u2014 so-called Nepo Kids \u2014 seem to enjoy luxurious lifestyles and numerous advantages while most youth struggle to find work. With youth unemployment running at 20% last year, according to the World Bank, the government estimates that more than 2,000 young people leave the country every day to seek work in the Middle East or southeast Asia.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am here to protest about the massive corruption in our country,\u201d said Bishnu Thapa Chetri, a student. \u201cThe country has gotten so bad that for us youths there is no grounds for us to stay.\u201d<\/p>\n

Focus turns to the government<\/p>\n

On Tuesday, local media and videos shared on social media showed protesters attacking the residences of the top political leaders in and around the capital of Kathmandu.<\/p>\n

Oli\u2019s private home was among those set on fire, as were those of the president, home minister and the leader of the country\u2019s largest party, Nepali Congress, which is part of the governing coalition. Oli\u2019s family was at the official residence at the time. The home of the leader of the opposition Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) was also set ablaze.<\/p>\n

A curfew was imposed in the capital and other cities, and schools in Kathmandu were closed \u2014 but several protests continued in the capital despite the measures.<\/p>\n

\u201cPunish the murders in government. Stop killing children,\u201d the protesters chanted, referring to the deaths at protests a day before. Police used loudspeakers urging them to return home.<\/p>\n

The protesters blamed the government for the police opening fire and called for the ouster of the increasingly unpopular prime minister.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are here to protest because our youths and friends are getting killed, we are here to see that justice is done and the present regime is ousted,\u201d said Narayan Acharya, who was among the protesters outside the battered wall of the parliament building Tuesday. \u201cK.P. Oli should be chased away,\u201d<\/p>\n

Police fire on crowds<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Protesters<\/p>\n

Protesters vandalize Nepalese congress party central office during protests against social media ban and corruption in Kathmandu, Nepal, Tuesday, Sept. 9, 2025. (AP Photo\/Niranjan Shrestha)<\/p>\n

Protesters vandalize Nepalese congress party central office during protests against social media ban and corruption in Kathmandu, Nepal, Tuesday, Sept. 9, 2025. (AP Photo\/Niranjan Shrestha)<\/p>\n

Read More<\/p>\n

Monday\u2019s rallies swelled to tens of thousands of people in Kathmandu and crowds surrounded the Parliament building before police opened fire on the demonstrators.<\/p>\n

\u201cStop the ban on social media. Stop corruption, not social media,\u201d the crowds chanted, waving national flags.<\/p>\n

Seven of the 19 killed and scores of the wounded were taken to the National Trauma Center, the country\u2019s main hospital.<\/p>\n

\u201cMany of them are in serious condition and appear to have been shot in the head and chest,\u201d said Dr. Badri Risa, who works at the hospital. Families waited for news of their relatives while people lined up to donate blood.<\/p>\n

Before he resigned, Oli said he would form an investigating committee that would submit a report on the shooting in 15 days. He added that compensation would be given to the families of those who were killed and those who were wounded would receive free treatment.<\/p>\n

Social media ban seen as part of larger crackdown<\/p>\n

The violence unfolded as Nepal\u2019s government pursues a broader attempt to regulate social media with a bill aimed at ensuring the platforms are \u201cproperly managed, responsible and accountable.\u201d The proposal has been widely criticized as a tool for censorship<\/a> and for punishing government opponents who voice their protests online.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"An<\/p>\n

An ambulance drives past protesters burning tires to block streets during protests against social media ban and corruption in Kathmandu, Nepal, Tuesday, Sept. 9, 2025. (AP Photo\/Niranjan Shrestha)<\/p>\n

An ambulance drives past protesters burning tires to block streets during protests against social media ban and corruption in Kathmandu, Nepal, Tuesday, Sept. 9, 2025. (AP Photo\/Niranjan Shrestha)<\/p>\n

Read More<\/p>\n

The bill would require companies to appoint a liaison office or a point of contact in the country. Rights groups have called it an attempt by the government to curb freedom of expression and fundamental rights.<\/p>\n

The registration requirement applied to about two dozen social networks widely used in Nepal. <\/p>\n

Neither Google, which owns YouTube, nor Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, responded to requests for comment from The Associated Press. Elon Musk\u2019s X platform also did not respond.<\/p>\n

TikTok, Viber and three other platforms have registered and operated without interruption.<\/p>\n

Nepal in 2023 banned TikTok<\/a> for disrupting \u201csocial harmony, goodwill and diffusing indecent materials.\u201d The ban was lifted last year after TikTok\u2019s<\/a> executives pledged to comply with local laws, including a ban of pornographic sites that was passed in 2018. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) \u2014 Nepal\u2019s prime minister resigned Tuesday as protests against a short-lived ban on social media…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":210769,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[7060,3881,13214,74,17628,66,57,59,115555,109197,7062,116516,65805,50,80,402,345,158,103,107],"class_list":{"0":"post-212746","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world","8":"tag-alphabet","9":"tag-ap-top-news","10":"tag-asia-pacific","11":"tag-china","12":"tag-corruption","13":"tag-elon-musk","14":"tag-general-news","15":"tag-inc","16":"tag-kathmandu","17":"tag-khadga-prasad-oli","18":"tag-meta-platforms","19":"tag-narayan-acharya","20":"tag-nepal","21":"tag-news","22":"tag-politics","23":"tag-protests-and-demonstrations","24":"tag-social-media","25":"tag-technology","26":"tag-world","27":"tag-world-news"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/212746","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=212746"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/212746\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/210769"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=212746"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=212746"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=212746"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}