{"id":152150,"date":"2025-09-23T14:49:57","date_gmt":"2025-09-23T21:49:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=152150"},"modified":"2025-09-23T14:49:57","modified_gmt":"2025-09-23T21:49:57","slug":"gen-zs-challenge-to-elite-dominance-in-south-asia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2025\/09\/23\/gen-zs-challenge-to-elite-dominance-in-south-asia\/","title":{"rendered":"Gen Z\u2019s Challenge to Elite Dominance in South Asia"},"content":{"rendered":"

By\u00a0Deepanshu Mohan<\/a> Courtesy The Diplomat<\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n

Deadly protests by youths in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Nepal show how lack of attention to inclusive development can fuel public anger.<\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Gen
Credit: Wikimedia Commons<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/a>In the tenuous history of Nepal\u2019s still-emerging democracy, September 8, 2025, the first time young demonstrators\u00a0broke<\/a>\u00a0into the prime minister\u2019s official home in Baluwatar, will be a red-letter date.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Months of unrest that were already undermining public trust culminated in the episode, highlighting the fragility of a system founded on institutional rent-seeking<\/a> and elite capture. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Kathmandu scenes spoke to more than just Nepali grievances. They drew attention to a global crisis of legitimacy<\/a>, as states promising political freedom but not economic opportunity face instability. The young Nepalis\u2019 collective angst was directed at making the state work for them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The symbolic grammar of the uprising made it unique. In a clear reminder of the pointlessness of funding education in a system skewed by nepotism<\/a> and patronage, protesters held up school textbooks. Inspired by the anime One Piece<\/a>,\u201d their symbols went viral and became a representation of resistance to systemic injustice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rejecting the established parties, which they saw as the same fabric of ruling elites, protesters declared that they were fed up with the political marketplace. Exclusion<\/a> was so complete that many had given up on reform from within; they wanted to reject the whole edifice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The state\u2019s use of\u00a0live ammunition<\/a>\u00a0against unarmed protesters transformed unrest into a full-scale uprising. The last vestige of legitimacy was destroyed by a government already eroded by years of\u00a0poor performance.<\/a><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet removing top incumbents alone did not solve the deeper dilemma. Nepal\u2019s example shows the paradox of many young revolutions, where an old order may be overthrown, but success can quickly be followed by disorientation if there are no institutions to channel popular discontent into lasting reform.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Region in Revolt<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nepal\u2019s issue is not isolated. Similar generational uprisings, each with its own vocabulary but united by a deep sense of betrayal, have shaken South Asia in recent years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Protest rallies forced former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to resign<\/a> in Sri Lanka in 2022. The economic collapse<\/a> brought on by depleting reserves, shortages of necessities, and hyperinflation served as the catalyst. The younger generation saw the Rajapaksa clan as the pinnacle of a political class that had pledged the nation\u2019s future for its own benefit<\/a>; their rage propelled the movement forward. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

By fusing protest theater, memes, music, and art into a common language of disapproval, the Gota Go Gama<\/a>\u201d camp in Colombo became a symbol of resistance. For Sri Lanka\u2019s youth, politics was about survival, dignity and the right to be heard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2024,\u00a0Bangladesh<\/a>\u00a0saw a similar but distinct surge. Student protesters initially took to the streets to voice their disapproval of corruption and job shortages, but their grievances swiftly expanded into a general rejection of what they saw as an\u00a0authoritarian trend<\/a>\u00a0during Sheikh Hasina\u2019s protracted rule.\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Online campaigns, memes, and catchphrases that were heavily influenced by youth culture around the world gave the online protests a boost. Once more, the message<\/a> was that the current political parties were interchangeable in their pursuit of power and disregard for the needs of the general populace. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

These movements were intentionally leader-averse. They reflected the dearth of suitable career paths for young people with ambition. Politics became a patronage game<\/a> after the traditional parties destroyed themselves. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In both, the current generation of young adults was born after the liberalizations of the 1990s and 2000s and inherited economies where opportunities were frequently accessed through elite connections or family networks<\/a>, and few formal and secure job opportunities existed. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Culture is where alienation is expressed when all that a democratic society has to offer is inanity. The Nepal youth protesters embraced textbooks, anime, slogans and encampments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Structural Problems<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

What connects the Bangladeshi movement to those in Nepal and Sri Lanka, is the coordinated narrative of structural exclusion<\/a>, rather than an ideological convergence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These uprisings reveal a deeper structural issue \u2014 the\u00a0fiscal foundation<\/a>\u00a0necessary to support inclusive development is lacking in many South Asian states. Politics then becomes more about allocating limited resources than creating a productive economy where taxation is restricted and\u00a0remittances<\/a>, aid, or resource rents are heavily relied upon.\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Politics also becomes a zero-sum game when state control itself becomes the primary route to wealth. To preserve networks of allegiance, elites seize control of the state, take what they can and recycle just enough.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Democratic openings are frequently susceptible to exploitation in such a setting. This path dependency is demonstrated by Nepal\u2019s own history. Since the 1990s, every significant political shift promised inclusion<\/a> but ultimately resulted in the resurgence of elite factions\u2019 dominance. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although a dynasty was overthrown in Sri Lanka\u2019s uprising, institutional reform has proven difficult<\/a> to achieve. Protests in Bangladesh mobilized tremendous energy, but they now face the harsh reality<\/a> of long-standing authoritarian systems. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The trend is similar to other regions of the world where regimes were overthrown<\/a> by uprisings but institutions remained intact. The 2011 revolution in Egypt<\/a> serves as the clearest example of how easily hope can be dashed when the military maintains control and the state apparatus remains unchanged.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What comes out of these cases is not indifference, but rather young people\u2019s logical conclusion that politics is off limits to them. Many people migrate or withdraw into silence until their level of exclusion becomes intolerable. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once the threshold is crossed, they pour into the streets with symbolic gestures that convey desperation better than manifestos or\u00a0 policy proposals ever could.\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is no denying the energy of such movements. But the danger is also just as obvious. If their victories only create a void, it is frequently occupied by the very forces they oppose or by authoritarian organizations that assert that they are re-establishing order.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The warning is clear for South Asian governments. Ritual elections, the distribution of patronage and the performance of democracy without delivery are not sustainable for political systems. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Youth-led movements demonstrate that the states\u2019 ability to increase opportunities and establish institutions that serve common people is what determines legitimacy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Without employment, education serves as a fertile ground for rebellion. Without economic agency, political freedom breeds explosive annoyance. Furthermore, trust is undermined by governance that lacks accountability, leading to the collapse of even the most basic state authority<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thus, the 2025 uprising in Nepal should be interpreted as a regional mirror as well as a national drama. It illustrates what occurs when a generation that refuses to accept exclusion as their fate collides with decades of elite capture. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whether political leaders take the message seriously will determine whether South Asia continues on its current trajectory or veers into cycles of instability. Old regimes may be overthrown by revolutions, but only institutions can guarantee that the hopes of a new generation won\u2019t be let down again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By\u00a0Deepanshu Mohan Courtesy The Diplomat Deadly protests by youths in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Nepal show how lack of attention to inclusive development can fuel public anger. In the tenuous history of Nepal\u2019s still-emerging democracy, September 8, 2025, the first time young demonstrators\u00a0broke\u00a0into the prime minister\u2019s official home in Baluwatar, will be a red-letter date. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-152150","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/152150","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=152150"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/152150\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":152151,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/152150\/revisions\/152151"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=152150"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=152150"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=152150"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}