Binoj Basnyat
South Asia is witnessing a generational awakening. Disillusioned with corruption, political stagnation, and weak institutions, youth are stepping into the streets to demand accountability and systemic change.
In Nepal today, Gen Z–led protests reflect a deeper search for a new political-security order, highlighting the gap between the realities of national security and the myopic responses of political leaders.
This movement is not an isolated development but part of a broader regional trend, where young citizens are emerging as the decisive force challenging entrenched elites. Comparisons with Sri Lanka and Bangladesh illustrate how such mobilizations can generate both instability and opportunities for reform.
This is not the first instance of remonstrations over bad governance, institutional corruption, and the political system.
Between March and May, several protests took place at Tinkune—the Pro-Monarchy Protest—calling for the restoration of the Hindu state and constitutional monarchy, along with the rollback of federalism. The protesters gathered in moderate numbers, occasionally swelling to thousands, but had limited impact.
These agitations were led by prominent Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) leaders and social activist Durga Prasai.
The tendency of leadership remaining concentrated in those with authority, while competition continues between traditional and innovative political parties, has discouraged independent winners like Balen Shah and left Rabi Lamichhane, president of the Rastriya Swatantra Party, dejected and jailed.
The core issue remains persistent and unmet. Despite significant mobilization and high-profile rallies, none of these protests achieved the structural change they sought. Calls for reinstating the monarchy, rolling back federalism, or converting Nepal back into a Hindu kingdom remain unfulfilled.
Issues of bad governance persist, and demands go unmet, with political elites firmly backing the republic, constitutional order, and current governance model.
Nepal: Gen Z as Agents of Real Shift
Nepal’s Gen Z protests are symptomatic of frustration with political leaders who are more preoccupied with short-term gains than systemic reform. For decades, governance has been defined by corruption, factionalism, and constitutional ambiguity.
The failure of the political class to consolidate democracy or deliver inclusive economic growth has produced widespread disillusionment.
Gen Z, raised in a digitally connected and globally aware environment, rejects the old rhetoric of sacrifice and compromise. Their demand is not for superficial change but for a real shift: constitutional amendments to streamline governance, prosecution of corruption to restore legitimacy, and restructuring of political-security institutions to confront both internal and external challenges.
This movement is Nepal’s warning signal. Unless political elites recognize the urgency of structural reform, the youth-led agitation could evolve into a long-term legitimacy crisis for the state.
Sri Lanka: The “Aragalaya” and Collapse of Political Authority
A powerful regional parallel can be drawn with Sri Lanka’s 2022 protests. Facing economic collapse, runaway inflation, and food and fuel shortages, citizens—particularly youth—mobilized under the banner of Aragalaya (“struggle”). Their demand was not limited to relief measures but extended to the very legitimacy of the Rajapaksa family, long dominant in politics.
The protests culminated in the resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and forced a reshaping of the political landscape. While Sri Lanka remains in economic distress, the movement shattered the myth of elite invulnerability and proved the capacity of youth-driven mass mobilization to reorder political realities.
For Nepal, the lesson is clear: when economic grievances and lack of job opportunities fuse with demands for accountability, generational protests can destabilize entrenched systems and force leadership change.
Bangladesh: Student Movements and Quota Reform Agitations
Bangladesh also offers instructive examples of youth as catalysts for change. The 2013 Shahbagh movement, initiated by bloggers and students, demanded justice for war crimes of 1971. Although politicized later, it revealed how young citizens could dominate national discourse.
The 2018 student road safety protests, sparked by the killing of two students in a traffic accident, quickly expanded into a broader indictment of governance failures, corruption, and authoritarian tendencies.
More recently, the 2024 Quota Reform protests mobilized thousands of students demanding fairer opportunities in public service recruitment. Each of these movements shook the political establishment, exposing the vulnerability of ruling elites to sustained youth agitation.
Like in Nepal, the recurring theme in Bangladesh is a political class focused on electoral dominance rather than systemic reform. The failure to address root causes—unemployment, corruption, inequity—has created cycles of protest that repeatedly test state legitimacy.
Regional Patterns: Common Triggers of Youth Protests
Across Nepal, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka, several common factors underpin youth-led mobilizations:
First is economic insecurity—with high unemployment, inflation, and limited opportunities driving frustration.
Second is the institutionalization of corruption and nepotism. The elite capture of state institutions erodes public trust.
Third is institutional weakness and politicization. Ambiguities in constitutions, weak rule of law, and politicized institutions prevent accountability.
Fourth is digital connectivity. Social media has become a mobilizing tool, enabling rapid organization and shaping narratives beyond state control.
Lastly, there is a gap in political imagination. Influential political leaders think tactically (focused on winning elections or suppressing dissent), while youth articulate strategic demands for structural change.
These shared triggers suggest that Nepal—and South Asia as a whole—is entering a phase where generational assertion may repeatedly challenge fragile democracies and unstable governance structures.
Implications for Nepal’s National Security Order
For Nepal, the Gen Z protests highlight a broader security dilemma. National security cannot be narrowly defined as territorial defense; it must also include political legitimacy, economic resilience, and social cohesion. A political system seen as corrupt and unresponsive undermines the state’s capacity to withstand external pressures, whether from great power competition in South Asia or internal instability.
Thus, the protests are not just about politics but about reimagining Nepal’s security-political order. Constitutional amendments, credible anti-corruption drives, and restructuring of governance must be pursued as matters of national security—not just political reform.
Conclusion: A Shift, Not Just Change
Nepal’s Gen Z protests, like those in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, are not fleeting outbursts but signals of a deeper regional transformation. Government crackdowns by law-and-order forces, curfews, and rhetoric about being “provoked by interest groups” do not serve justice to the people.
Youth are demanding a shift in how politics is conducted, how accountability is enforced, and how security is understood. For South Asian states, ignoring these movements is not an option. If leaders continue to treat them as tactical battles, they risk further instability.
There is a colossal breach in acknowledging the national security situation—in the search for a new security-political order—and the understanding by the accountable political leaders. Constitutional amendments and confronting corruption may be a good start, but more political and governance restructuring is needed.
The major political parties are reacting to the events with the mindset of winning battles rather than addressing the root causes of the war. I see the Gen Z protest as an initiation for real shift—not just change.
The choice before Nepal’s political class is stark: embrace constitutional reform, accountability, and restructuring—or face a generational revolt that could redefine the state’s legitimacy. In this sense, Gen Z’s movement is not a call for change within the old order, but an initiation of a new order altogether.
(Basnyat, a Major General (Retd) of the Nepali Army, is a strategic analyst and is associated with Rangsit University, Thailand)
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