Nepal’s Social Media Ban Unrest Kills 14

by Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Chief International Correspondent

KATHMANDU/JAKARTA (Worthy News) – At least 14 people were killed and dozens injured in Nepal’s capital Monday as riot police fired tear gas and rubber bullets at protesters trying to storm parliament over a sweeping social media shutdown and mounting corruption, state television said.

Witnesses described chaos as young demonstrators breached barricades, set an ambulance ablaze, and ferried the wounded by motorbike. “The police have been firing indiscriminately,” one protester told the India-based Asian News International (ANI) news agency. “They fired bullets which missed me but hit a friend standing behind me. He was hit in the hand.”

Crowds chanted, “Shut down corruption, not social media,” after the government, led by Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli, banned 26 prominent social media platforms and messaging apps it said had failed to comply with new regulations.

The restrictions cover global platforms, including Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, X, Reddit, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and Signal. Officials said the blackout would remain in place “until these social media platforms register with regulators.” Only five companies, includingTikTok, complied with the order and avoided restrictions.

A curfew was imposed in central Kathmandu, and army troops were deployed, yet unrest spread beyond the capital to other major cities, including Biratnagar, Pokhara, and Bharatpur. Biratnagar is a key industrial hub near the Indian border, Pokhara is the country’s main tourist gateway to the Himalayas, and Bharatpur is a fast-growing commercial center near Chitwan National Park.

Officials defended the social media ban as necessary to curb hate speech, misinformation, and cybercrime, though rights advocates condemned it as a crackdown on free expression.

DIPLOMATIC AND REGIONAL FALLOUT

India expressed concern about the violence and urged Nepal to uphold democratic freedoms and the free flow of information.

The country’s border security force, the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), placed the frontier on high alert to prevent unrest spilling into Indian territory, with Home Minister Amit Shah overseeing the response.

Rights watchdogs, including the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), condemned the shutdown as a “dangerous precedent for press freedom.”

Journalists in Kathmandu joined demonstrations, holding placards with slogans such as “No shutdown of social networks, no silencing of voices.”

Analysts said Nepal’s sweeping restrictions highlight a broader global debate about regulating Big Tech.

While governments worldwide—from the European Union to Brazil, China, and India—have introduced tighter rules on digital platforms, critics warned Kathmandu’s approach risks tipping into authoritarian suppression of dissent.

TAXI DRIVER CRUSHED

The turmoil mirrored recent protests in Indonesia, where at least four people died in student-led demonstrations against entrenched political elites and economic hardship.

Public anger intensified after video showed an armored vehicle crushing a motorcycle taxi driver, prompting fresh clashes with riot police.

Though Christians have not been central to either protest movement, they may face heightened risks as instability deepens, according to a Worthy News analysis.

In Nepal, the small Christian minority—already restricted by anti-conversion laws and social hostility—fears further repression, advocacy reports suggest.

In Indonesia, church bodies including the Communion of Churches and the Bishops’ Conference condemned police violence and urged dialogue, calling for “justice and peace” in response to the bloodshed.

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