Today's Edition
KATHMANDU (THE NEW YORK TIMES NEWS SERVICE)
After a day of clashes on Monday that killed at least 19 people, Nepal’s government retreated from its ban on some of the world’s biggest social media platforms, which had helped to set off the unrest.
By Tuesday morning, all 26 of the platforms that the government blocked last week, including Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram and WeChat, were back online. But protesters were back on the street despite a curfew, demanding that government officials be punished and replaced.
The protests, which were fuelled by anger over corruption and a weak economy as well as the social media ban, have been the most widespread in Nepal’s recent history.
In the capital, Kathmandu, protesters surged toward the parliament complex Monday, occupying a security post before being dispersed by police, according to witnesses. It was not immediately clear how those who died were killed, or how hundreds of others were wounded.
"To address the demands raised by Gen Z, a social media ban will be lifted,” Prithvi Subba Gurung, minister for communication and information technology, said in an interview with The New York Times late Monday.
The ban went into effect Thursday for platforms that officials said had failed to comply with new requirements to register with the government.
Local news media reported that at least 400 people have been injured in the unrest.
