The Nepal government was the first to blink. In a late-night decision, the government lifted the ban on social media apps after protests, led by Gen Z, turned violent, resulting in clashes with the police that led to the death of 19 people.
Nepal's Minister for Communications and Information Technology Prithvi Subba Gurung announced the decision and said the government has appealed to the Gen Z to call off the protests.
"The government has already decided to open social media by addressing the demand of Gen-Z," said the minister.
Last week, Nepal's government blocked access to several social media platforms after the companies missed the deadline to register under new regulations, aimed at cracking down on misuse.
Nepal's government has said social media users create fake IDs and use them to spread hate speech and fake news, commit fraud and other crimes on these platforms.
A government notice directed the regulator, Nepal Telecommunications Authority, to deactivate unregistered social media but gave no details of which platforms faced action.
Local media reported that the banned platforms include Meta's Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, Alphabet's YouTube, China's Tencent and Snapchat, Pinterest and X.
Earlier today, authorities imposed a curfew around the parliament building after thousands of the protesters tried to enter the legislature by breaking a police barricade. Police had orders to use water cannons, batons and rubber bullets to control the crowd.
Protesters carried placards carrying slogans such as "Shut down corruption and not social media", "Unban social media", and "Youths against corruption", as they marched through Kathmandu.
Many people in the Himalayan nation think corruption is rampant, and the government of Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has been criticised by opponents for failing to deliver on its promises.
