Thru’ the Desk of the Editor
Editorial: Global Phenomena of Gen Z Protests
People called 2019 as the “year of the protest” as civil unrest flooded streets from Hong Kong to Egypt. Before that it was 2011, marked Occupy Wall Street and Arab Spring’s pro-democracy uprisings in Middle East. But now, with what are being called Gen Z protests spreading around the world, 2025 could steal that title. From Africa to Asia, Gen Z has emerged as a formidable force in global protests, challenging governments over issues ranging from economic inequality to digital rights. Armed with smartphones, social media, and an unflinching sense of purpose, young people are standing up to systems they believe have failed them. Wave of youth-led protests has hit streets in Nepal, Morocco, Madagascar, Philippines, Indonesia, all of them mobilizing support online, driven by frustration against government corruption or incompetence.
In Nepal, anger is over allegations of decades long corruption and nepotism, prompted by recent social media ban implemented by government which was quickly reversed. In September 2025, Nepal’s Gen Z activists took to streets after government banned 26 social media platforms for failing to register locally. The protests quickly escalated, resulting in property damage and dozens of casualties. Youth demonstrators demanded restoration of digital freedom and transparency in governance. The crisis forced Prime Minister, K.P. Sharma Oli and several top officials to resign amid widening criticism of Nepal’s political elite, leaving more than 70 dead and hundreds injured. Homes of wealthy and influential families in Kathmandu were torched. The movement underscored how essential online expression has become for a generation raised on connectivity.
Protestors spilled into streets of Indonesia in late August 2025. The protests were spearheaded by gig workers employed by online delivery and transport platforms in response to welfare cuts proposed by President Prabowo Subianto. Amid rising concerns over concentration of power in hands of armed forces and business oligarchs, public outrage intensified when government gave members of parliament $3000 housing handout for lawmakers, ten times greater than minimum wage, but unrest eventually exploded into broader movement against corruption and impunity among Indonesia’s ruling class.
In September – October 2025, Madagascar witnessed its biggest youth-led protests in decades. Thousands of young demonstrators filled Antananarivo’s streets in the Indian ocean island, demanding access to clean water and electricity amid worsening power cuts. They accused President Andry Rajoelina’s government of corruption and neglect. The unrest turned violent leaving at least 22 dead prompting government to order nighttime curfews in the capital and other cities, prompting the President to fire prime minister Christian Ntsay and rest of his government which drew thousands onto the streets. The demonstrations gathered momentum on social media and have mirrored recent youth-led antigovernment protests in Nepal and Kenya. In a speech on national television Rajoeline said that “Your demands have been heard, and I apologize if there are members of the government who have not done the work that the people expected”. The protestors had called for resignation of both Ntsay and Rajoeline, but Rajoelina gave no indication that he would step down. Digital activism and social media helped coordinate marches, highlighting Gen Z’s power in mobilising under economic duress.
Morroco’s youth are rallying for social justice reforms and state of public services as Morroco invests billions of dollars into hosting 2030 FIFA World Cup. Anger has boiled over contrasts between government spending on stadiums in lead-up to 2030 FIFA World Cup and a subpar health system that lags behind countries with similarly sized economies. In October 2025, “Morocco Gen Z 212” movement erupted after death of eight women in a poorly equipped hospital. Thousands of young Moroccans protested against corruption, rising living costs, lack of opportunities, contrasting lavish infrastructure projects with collapsing public services. Organised largely on platforms like Discord and TikTok, protests reflected Gen Z’s growing frustration with systemic inequality and their ability to unite digitally for real-world change.
In France, between May and October 2025, French Gen Z-led nationwide demonstrations against proposed austerity measures, particularly cuts to public services and social welfare. The “Bloquons tout” (Block Everything) protests involved coordinated blockages across major cities. The movement showcased political engagement and influence of French youth.
In India, September 2025 saw massive demonstration in Ladakh where local youth, many of them Gen Z demanded greater political autonomy and job opportunities. Tensions flared up after talks with central government stalled, leading to violent clashes. The movement spotlighted regional disparities and growing willingness of young citizens to challenge authority through sustained civic action.
In Serbia between November 2024 and July 2025, Gen Z activists led nationwide protests following Novi Sad train station roof collapse and broader governance issues. Tens of thousands rallied in Belgrade and other cities, demanding justice, government accountability and snap elections. Clashes with police led to arrests and ministerial resignations, highlighting the youth’s pivotal role in driving systemic change.
In June 2024, Kenya’s Gen Z protesters successfully forced their government to withdraw a controversial finance bill that would have increased taxes. Youth groups organised through X (formerly Twitter) and TikTok, leading to nationwide demonstrations under the hashtag #RejectFinanceBill2024. Tens of thousands of Kenyan youths took to streets last year, storming parliament and forcing President William Ruto to fire his cabinet and withdraw the controversial tax bill. Their ire was aimed at his perceived inability to tackle rampant corruption. The protests showcased rise of “digital democracy’ where young people influence national policy through coordinated online campaigns.
In Bangladesh in July – August 2024, Bangladesh Gen Z activists led a nationwide movement against controversial job quota system, demanding merit-based reforms. The protests escalated following violent police crackdown that resulted in over 100 deaths. On 5th August 2024, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resigned and fled Bangladesh ending her 15-year rule. The interim government led by Muhammad Yunus, pledged to hold elections by end of 2025.
Protesters clashed with police in Lima, the capital of Peru, as young demonstrators joined by bus and taxi drivers, marched over growing economic insecurity. The protests began on 20th September 2025 following passage of a reform measure that will require young people to pay into a private pension fund. Taxi and bus drivers, say gangs are extorting them for money and that the government is not doing enough to intervene. Accusations of corruption, economic insecurity and crime have also contributed to fierce government opposition and mass demonstrations. Many Peruvians have called President Dina Boluarte to leave office.
Thousands of Filipino youth flooded Manila to denounce corruption in flood-control projects in the Philippines, demanding transparency and accountability from leaders whom they accuse of betraying the public trust. More than 200 people have been arrested following clashes between police and masked protesters at anti-corruption demonstrations in the Philippine capital, Manila on 21st September 2025. While most rallies were peaceful, the gathering in some places like Ayala Bridge and Mendiola turned very violent. Thousands attended rallies in Manila over a corruption scandal linked to ghost flood control projects which cost taxpayers billions of dollars. The Philippine economy is estimated to have lost up to 118.5 billion pesos ($ 2 billion) from 2023 to 2025 due to corruption in flood control projects, according to Department of Finance, Government of Philippines. Whether the protest will have a lasting change remains uncertain, but one thing is clear, the voice of the next generation is growing louder and it is shaping the country’s political landscape in real time.
These are some of well-known, but others, similar youth-led protests have recently emerged in other countries, including Paraguay, East Timor and Mongolia. The common thread in all of them is frustration over poor governance, lack of opportunities and rampant inequality. In many parts of the world, Gen Z as a cohort is suffering. They are coming of age and graduating into a world with political instability, increased polarisation, economic turmoil, declining living standards, widening wealth inequality, weaker job market and a large disaffected, often unemployed youth population. The future can look bleak and hopeless. Gen Z defined as those who are born roughly between 1996 and 2010, is first generation to grow up entirely in internet age. They are those who are using those digital tools to rally behind their causes.
The young people behind them have shown that they can translate digital discontent into a real-world movement that authorities cannot ignore. They differ in origin but share in common a refusal to go through institutions like political parties or unions to be heard. Coordination and activism through social media is prevalent in each case, and some protests have resulted in overthrow of national governments. The protests generally arose from mass dissatisfaction relating to government scandals, increasing difficulties of access to basic utilities and declining standard of living. Gen Z feels “short changed” with their interests not represented or taken into account, resulting into Gen Z becoming sceptical with liberal representative democracy despite still valuing democratic decision making principles.
The fact these movements spread so fast to other countries show that public display of protests via social media, particularly of large crowds can be extremely powerful. Social media is a way of unifying and connecting disparate voices and experiences, which is important in movement building. Protestors in Morocco and Nepal frequently communicated via messaging platform Discord. Other digital platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Telegram have also been used with these tools enabling decentralised, real-time coordination, rapid information sharing, and viral symbols that unify diverse groups across the globe. Internet was used earlier also to create protest culture. There have been hashtag movements earlier also like Occupy Wall Street, Idle No More but while these protests may feel like recent memory for many observers, for a young Gen Z, they are historical.
While the name “Gen Z protest” might suggest youth-led movements are new, that is not true. Many significant protests like Tiananmen Square, Occupy Wall Street, Arab Spring, Umbrella Revolution in Hong Kong have been led by younger people. But digital technologies have made it faster and easier to mobilise today. This may give impression that Gen Z protest at a higher rate than other generations. It also allows people to see their experiences of inequality or injustice as a collective one. As more young people consume this content, they may start to see protest as an appropriate strategy to voice their frustration with local government. What is distinct about current wave of youth mobilisation is convergence of conditions across very different political environments. Young people are confronting rising costs of living and weak job creation at same time as political authority is concentrated in aging elites with little space for renewal.
Despite contextual differences, these movements share three defining characteristics of social media-driven activism. First, social media enable young people to share personal experiences of injustice and connect them to broader socioeconomic structures of inequality, abuse of power, absence of a secure future. These exchanges generate collective grievances and emotions – not only anger but also hope for change. Platform connectivity allows strangers to unite around common causes, forging group identities and solidarities. Second, social media provides space for young activists to exchange tactical knowledge both domestically and across borders, fostering a broad learning networks. Third, as online dissent escalates, illiberal and authoritarian regimes often respond with censorship, and in many cases with armed repression. Yet internet blackouts and violent crackdowns frequently backfire, sparking even larger mobilisations that threaten regime survival, especially, when protesters live stream state violence, amplifying public outrage.
Governments have sought to manage this public anger in past by ignoring, appeasing or repressing, but that approach is no longer working. Youth have clearly indicated to the state that they hold deep contempt for those institutions that promote endemic corruption, crony capitalism and inefficient governance. If unfolding of events in aftermath of Gen Z protest is any indication, then we can say that such depoliticised and instanteous mode of conducting politics is here to stay. These group of young people are those who belong to age group which has grown up in time of internet and is hyperconnected, who belong to period of instanteous communication and view politics very differently. This generation is not understanding politics through legacy but is focused on how their present and near past have been shaped. The fact that protesters have successfully mobilised themselves on instant messaging apps or platforms is a telling point of how mode of political communication have changed. The young protesters who took to streets against political conduct of parties, represent a new class of aspirational group. It is a sentiment that binds together protests thousands of miles apart.
Gen Z-led protests will continue to erupt as they have in various countries until governments take action at national and local levels. Keeping in mind the fact that large scale, youth-driven, leaderless demonstrations, which spiralled into violence and forced regime changes, could spill or may inspire parallel mobilisations in any country, appropriate readiness measures need to be beefed up, as a part of internal security exercise to deal with a similar situation if it were to arise in any place. A detailed contingency action plan must be in place to handle such a situation. Also, there is urgent need to both create new innovative pathways for this new generation and adapt traditional processes to meet the moment. Young people must be granted a seat at the table, but the table itself must be critically modernised. To survive and prosper, our political systems must be open to evolving for the next generation.
Articles in this edition of the Journal examine various dimesions of Diplomacy and Security related issues. All authors have presented their views on topics ranging from Impact of Israel’s Technological Warfare in Gaza to Biological Weapons Convention Institutional Framework, India’s strategic outreach to Maldives to Emergency 1975 in India, India United States Relations to India’s strategic significance in Central Asia, with well-planned research on the topics with deep thought process. Their views will surely help in instilling the subjects and topics under discussion in the minds of the readers.
