Furious young people took to the streets again on Tuesday in Kathmandu in protest by the curfew, after the government had lifted the ban on social media. They invaded the parliament building and set fire to it. Thick plumes of gray smoke could be seen above the center of the capital.
Earlier in the day, they stormed the office of the largest party in the country, the Nepalese Congrest Party, and the homes of various prominent politicians. The international airport of Kathmandu is closed due to the violence in the city.
‘Your murderer has resigned’
The mayor of Kathmandu, Balendra Shah, has called for the demonstrators to reluctance and said “your murderer resigned,” referring to the stepped Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli. He insisted on the outrageous demonstrators not to destroy public ownership.
Protesters on Tuesday before the office of the Nepalese Congrestment Party in Kathmandu. © ANP/ EPA
For many of the young demonstrators, who call themselves ‘generation Z’, the ban on social media was the boiling point in their anger against the government. But they are also the widespread corruption and poor economic opportunities in their country awkward.
Anger focuses on ‘Nepo Kids’
They focus their anger mainly on the so -called ‘Nepo Kids’. These are the descendants of rich politicians and powerful figures, who apparently are the beneficiaries of nepotism. The demonstrators accuse them of showing them off on social media with their luxury possessions, expensive holidays and lush lifestyle.
“Nepo children show their lifestyle on Instagram and Tiktok, but never explain where the money comes from,” says a Tiktok user in a video that goes viral.
Grip and corruption
Yugant Ghimire, a 27-year-old engineer who participated in the protest on Monday, told news channel Al Jazeera that it was necessary to put the old leaders out of power. “We are tired of always seeing the same old faces,” said Ghimire. “The government committed a grip of power, the corruption is rampant and nobody needs to be accountable.”
Demonstrators show the National Flag of Nepal and on fire in protest against the fatal action of the police against demonstrators. © AFP
Safety forces have also deployed sharply on demonstrators and water cannons and tear gas in various other cities.
The heads of six security organizations, including the Nepalese army, the police and the secretaries of the Ministries of the Interior have issued a statement that they hope will help to calm the situation.
Surprise about escalation
Ramyata Limbu, a Nepalese journalist in Kathmandu, says that everyone is surprised and shocked about the size of the protests. “Of course there was disappointment about the occurrence of the current government, about the growing corruption, the lack of transparency, the lack of accountability. But I don’t think someone, at least not with whom I spoke, had expected that it would escalate to this level,” said Limbu.
She said that smoke comes from the parliament building that was destroyed by demonstrators. “I find it rather disturbing, worrying, and for the time being nobody seems to be in charge.”
Nepal, a country in the Himalaya Mountains with thirty million inhabitants, is known for its turbulent politics and has known more than a dozen governments since it turned over the monarchy in 2008 and made the transition to a republic after a civil war that lasted ten years.