Nepal’s young protesters and army in talks to decide interim leader
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Army personnel inspecting the identity documents of commuters along a street as part of security measures imposed in Kathmandu on Sept 10.
PHOTO: AFP
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KATHMANDU – Nepal’s army will resume talks on Sept 11 with “Gen Z” protesters to decide a new interim leader for the Himalayan nation, an army spokesman said, after angry demonstrations that killed 30 and forced prime minister K.P. Sharma Oli to resign.
Soldiers patrolled the capital Kathmandu’s quiet streets after its worst protests in years,
“Initial talks are on and will continue today,” Mr Raja Ram Basnet, the spokesman, told Reuters, referring to the discussions on a new interim leader. “We are trying to normalise the situation slowly.”
The death toll from the protests had risen to 30 by Sept 11, Nepal’s Health Ministry said, with 1,033 injured.
Prohibitory orders will stay in Kathmandu and surrounding areas for most of the day, the army said in a statement, while an airport spokesperson said international flights were operating normally.
The demonstrations are popularly referred to as the “Gen Z” protests, with most participants being young people voicing frustration at the government’s perceived failure to fight corruption and boost economic opportunities.
The protesters have called for former chief justice Sushila Karki to serve as interim prime minister, said Mr Raman Kumar Karna, the secretary of the Supreme Court Bar Association, whom they consulted.
“When they requested me, I accepted,” Ms Karki told Indian TV news channel CNN-News18.
The protests – in which government buildings, from the Supreme Court to ministers’ homes, including Mr Oli’s private residence, were set ablaze – subsided only after the prime minister resigned.
Business establishments torched included several hotels in the tourist town of Pokhara and the Hilton in Kathmandu. REUTERS
