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ACROSS continents and cultures, a generational tremor is shaking the foundations of old politics. From the streets of Bangladesh and Nepal in South Asia to the island nation of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean and across the Pacific to Peru in South America young people, mostly in their late teens and twenties, are rising to challenge authority, corruption and apathy. These movements are not led by political elites or ideological parties but by a digital generation that has grown up under globalisation, disillusionment and smartphones.

In the recent waves of youth-led protests across these nations, one finds both local particularities and universal themes: the assertion of dignity, fairness and a voice in the governance of their futures. What unites them is not geography, language or ideology, but a shared refusal to inherit a broken system without protest.

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The spark in Bangladesh

IN BANGLADESH, the Gen-Z movement erupted dramatically in mid-2024, when university students launched what began as a protest against the discriminatory quota system in government jobs. The movement, which rapidly transformed into a nationwide uprising, was notable not merely for its scale but for its tone — fiercely independent, deeply moral and non-partisan.

The student leaders who emerged — largely from public universities — became the faces of a new civic consciousness. Their slogans were clear and fearless: ‘We want justice, not privilege,’ ‘We are not enemies of the state, we are citizens of it.’ Despite violent crackdowns and censorship, the movement sustained itself through digital coordination and community solidarity.

When the government eventually conceded partial reforms and promised further review, it was widely acknowledged that the youth had forced the state to listen. The protests revealed something profound: that a new generation had arrived, one that refused to accept inherited hierarchies, patronage politics or the narrative that ‘stability’ must come at the expense of justice.

The movement’s discipline, its use of creative protest art, and its ability to connect moral outrage with humour and resilience made it distinctly Gen-Z in spirit. It was a movement born not of political parties but of the collective imagination of a connected generation.

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Nepal’s digital democracy in motion

MEANWHILE, in Nepal, the Gen-Z awakening has taken a somewhat different shape but carries the same energy. Here, the young generation has been mobilising around issues of corruption, unemployment and political stagnation. Having grown up in the aftermath of the Maoist insurgency and the transition to republican democracy, Nepal’s youth have inherited a political system that promised inclusion but often delivered inertia.

In 2025, young activists, vloggers, and social media influencers became the vanguard of a citizens’ protest demanding accountability from political elites. The ‘Enough is Enough’ campaign, which first emerged during the pandemic years, evolved into a broader anti-corruption and civic renewal movement. What sets Nepal’s youth activism apart is its digital literacy and decentralised nature. Many of its leaders are not traditional activists but coders, students and young professionals who see social media not just as a communication tool but as a public square.

Videos of peaceful protests, sarcastic memes about political dynasties, and live-streamed rallies on TikTok and Instagram turned urban streets into virtual assemblies. The Gen-Z cohort in Nepal has also been instrumental in pushing discussions around mental health, gender equality and migration, challenging the culture of silence that has long surrounded these issues. In many ways, they are redefining what it means to be political — not through rigid ideology, but through lived ethics, empathy and innovation.

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Madagascar’s generational surge for democracy

THOUSANDS of miles away, in Madagascar, a similar pattern of youthful dissent has been unfolding, though in a markedly different socio-political landscape. Madagascar’s Gen-Z-led protests gained momentum during and after the 2023 presidential elections, when allegations of fraud and authoritarianism provoked outrage among students and urban youth. Amid poverty, unemployment and chronic underinvestment in education, young people — especially in the capital Antananarivo — mobilised through social media to demand transparency and reform.

What distinguished Madagascar’s youth uprising was its bold articulation of democratic ideals in a context where civic institutions have long been fragile. Many protesters were first-time voters or recent graduates with little faith in existing political parties. They called for the modernisation of governance, job creation and respect for freedom of expression.

The protests were met with heavy police repression, but the youth continued to express dissent through music, graffiti and online campaigns that reached far beyond the island’s borders. Observers noted that the language of the Malagasy protesters bore striking similarity to that of their South Asian peers: a mix of frustration and hope, a yearning for dignity, and a rejection of corruption as ‘the way things are’.

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Peru’s digital uprising

IN PERU, the Gen-Z movement has redefined political resistance in Latin America. Its roots lie in the 2020 ‘Marcha de los 200’ protests, when young people led nationwide demonstrations against political corruption and presidential manipulation of power. But the flame reignited in 2023–2024, when widespread discontent over inequality, climate disasters and Indigenous rights converged into a unified youth-led mobilisation.

What makes Peru’s Gen-Z uprising distinctive is its intersection of digital activism, cultural pride and Indigenous solidarity. Young Peruvians — many of them students and artists — used social media to coordinate mass protests in Lima, Cusco and Arequipa. TikTok videos featuring Quechua chants and digital art celebrating Andean identity became symbols of unity between urban and rural youth.

Like their Bangladeshi and Nepali counterparts, Peruvian youth reject partisan politics, focusing instead on moral and generational renewal. Their calls — ‘Ni corruptos ni indiferentes’ (Neither corrupt nor indifferent) — resonated with millions disillusioned by decades of elite politics. Yet their activism also connects to climate justice: Peru’s Gen-Z is among the first to frame environmental destruction in the Amazon as both an ecological and human rights crisis.

Despite state repression and the deaths of protesters in Puno and Juliaca, Peru’s youth movement persisted, learning from earlier Latin American waves such as Chile’s 2019 student protests. They embrace art, humour and music as weapons of resistance — graffiti reading ‘La patria es joven’ (The nation is young) now marks Lima’s walls.

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The anatomy of Gen-Z resistance

DESPITE the geographical and cultural distance between these countries, the Gen-Z movements in Bangladesh, Nepal, Madagascar and Peru share strikingly common features.

First, they are leaderless yet highly coordinated. These movements are horizontal, networked and fluid, rejecting the cult of personality or the old hierarchies of student politics. Leaders emerge organically — some fade, others rise — but the collective identity remains stronger than any single figure.

Secondly, digital communication has become both the lifeline and the battleground. Social media platforms — especially Facebook, TikTok, and X (formerly Twitter) — function as alternative public spheres where information circulates rapidly, mobilising support and circumventing censorship. Yet these platforms also expose activists to surveillance, misinformation and online harassment, making digital resilience a new form of civic skill.

A third commonality lies in the moral tone of these movements. Gen-Z protesters often speak in the language of ethics rather than politics. They are less concerned with party manifestos than with fairness, transparency and decency in public life. This moral framing makes them relatable to wider publics — teachers, parents, even small business owners — who may not share their radicalism but recognise the truth in their demands.

Finally, these movements are deeply inclusive in imagination. They bridge class, gender and regional lines more successfully than previous generations of activism. Women have taken visible leadership roles, and digital tools have enabled students from smaller towns to participate on an equal footing with those from capital cities. This inclusivity is both symbolic and practical — it reflects a generation that has grown up believing in diversity as a norm rather than an exception.

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Divergent paths: context matters

YET for all these shared characteristics, the trajectories of the Gen-Z movements in Bangladesh, Nepal, Madagascar and Peru diverge in important ways, shaped by their national contexts.

In Bangladesh, the youth uprising emerged against a backdrop of long-term centralisation of political power and shrinking civic space. The movement’s confrontation with the state was direct and often violent, as the government viewed it as a challenge to its authority. Here, the youth’s principal demand was structural — challenging a system perceived as unjust and exclusionary. While it began with the issue of job quotas, it quickly evolved into a broader demand for democratic accountability.

By contrast, in Nepal, the Gen-Z movement is less confrontational and more reformist. The youth seek to revitalise democracy, not overthrow it. They are pushing for transparency, efficiency and generational renewal within existing democratic institutions. The digital literacy of Nepali youth, their exposure to global ideas and their relative freedom of expression have enabled them to sustain a civic conversation that remains largely peaceful and policy-oriented.

Madagascar’s youth movement, on the other hand, operates in a setting of extreme economic hardship and fragile democracy. The stakes there are existential rather than procedural. The protesters’ demands are intertwined with the basic struggle for livelihood and dignity. Their activism thus takes on both a political and humanitarian tone — a demand not only for clean governance but for survival itself.

And in Peru, the Gen-Z struggle blends political protest with cultural revival. The movement bridges Indigenous traditions with modern digital activism, creating a hybrid form of civic consciousness that links urban disillusionment with rural resistance. Where South Asian youth challenge bureaucratic injustice, Peruvian youth confront historical exclusion and colonial legacies embedded in their republic.

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Women at the forefront

ONE of the least acknowledged yet most transformative aspects of these movements is the role of women. In all four countries, female students and young professionals have emerged as visible leaders, speakers and organisers. Their presence symbolises the generational and gendered break with traditional power structures.

In Bangladesh, women from universities like Dhaka and Rajshahi took charge of logistics, digital messaging and public communication. They articulated not only the injustice of the quota system but also the everyday sexism embedded in public institutions. In Nepal, young women journalists and content creators have redefined activism through storytelling — using YouTube channels and podcasts to expose corruption and promote civic literacy. In Madagascar, women musicians and poets have been among the loudest voices against political repression, using art to articulate resistance where direct confrontation could be dangerous. And in Peru, Indigenous women and Afro-Peruvian activists marched at the frontlines, their traditional dress transformed into symbols of defiance.

The feminisation of protest in these contexts challenges both patriarchal norms and the stereotype that youth politics is a male domain. It signals a deeper social transformation: a generation unwilling to separate the fight for democracy from the fight for equality. Gen-Z women are not asking for inclusion; they are leading the charge, redefining activism as an intersection of gender, class and justice.

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Education, migration and politics of disillusionment

A COMMON thread linking the Gen-Z generation across these countries is their uneasy relationship with education and employment. They are the most educated generation in their nations’ histories but also the most economically insecure.

In Bangladesh, graduates face a saturated job market where merit often plays second fiddle to political connections. In Nepal, youth unemployment and the allure of foreign labour migration have created a paradox: a country proud of its democratic achievements yet unable to retain its young talent. In Madagascar, chronic underemployment and a struggling economy leave educated youth frustrated, many contemplating emigration. In Peru, a crisis of inequality has left young graduates underemployed while elites remain insulated.

This mix of aspiration and alienation fuels the moral urgency of Gen-Z activism. Their demand for justice is not only political but existential: a call for systems that reward effort and honesty rather than corruption and favouritism. It also explains their impatience with politics-as-usual — they are not asking for incremental reform but for a wholesale renewal of the social contract.

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The rise of digital empathy

ANOTHER striking feature of Gen-Z activism is the emergence of digital empathy — the ability to connect across borders and causes. Bangladeshi youth showed solidarity with Nepali students campaigning against corruption; Nepali activists echoed Malagasy calls for electoral fairness. These exchanges, often informal, illustrate how the internet has created a transnational moral community among young people who see human rights and dignity as universal values.

This connectivity has deepened the global awareness of local struggles. When images of Bangladeshi students facing water cannons went viral, solidarity messages appeared from student unions in Nairobi and Jakarta. When Malagasy youth held digital sit-ins under hashtags demanding democracy, South Asian activists amplified their voices. The internet, often blamed for apathy, has paradoxically become the infrastructure of empathy — a bridge across continents where young people learn that their frustrations are shared, and their courage, contagious.

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Art, humour, and the reimagination of politics

ONE of the defining traits of Gen-Z movements is the creative reimagination of political expression. In Dhaka, student artists painted murals of justice and freedom on university walls. In Kathmandu, satirical TikTok videos lampooned corrupt officials. In Antananarivo, youth rappers turned protest chants into viral songs blending Malagasy folk with hip-hop rhythms. In Lima, giant murals of ‘Ni una muerte más’ (Not one more death) turned grief into collective power.

This artistic activism does more than entertain — it democratises dissent. Humour, irony and aesthetic innovation allow protesters to bypass censorship, disarm fear and build solidarity. It also humanises protest: where previous generations saw marches and manifestos, Gen-Z sees memes, flash mobs and multimedia storytelling. They are not abandoning seriousness; they are simply communicating in the language of their age — a politics of playfulness with profound moral depth.

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Politics of patience and persistence

ANOTHER notable trait of these youth movements is their endurance. Far from being one-off outbursts, they represent a sustained transformation of political consciousness. The Bangladeshi students’ movement withstood months of repression yet retained public sympathy. In Nepal, digital activists have continued their campaign for transparency even as mainstream media lost interest. In Madagascar, despite harsh crackdowns, young people have found ways to reassemble — online, in art collectives, or through local community forums. Peruvian students rebuilt coalitions after deadly state violence.

This persistence challenges the stereotype of Gen-Z as fleeting or distracted. On the contrary, these movements reveal a generation learning to balance moral conviction with strategic patience. They are discovering that real change is slow and that digital virality must translate into institutional influence to endure.

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New political imagination

FROM Dhaka’s student marches to Kathmandu’s digital campaigns and Antananarivo’s music-infused protests to Lima’s murals, the story of Gen-Z’s awakening transcends borders. It is a global echo of youth reclaiming their right to be heard and to shape their destiny.

They are the first truly connected generation — fluent in hashtags and human empathy alike — who understand that the struggle for dignity is no longer confined to one country. Their courage reminds the world that democracy, however imperfect, still depends on those willing to defend it.

The Gen-Z of Bangladesh, Nepal, Madagascar and Peru are doing just that — through art, protest and persistence — turning anger into ethics, and ethics into action. And in doing so, they are not only rewriting the political script of their nations but also renewing humanity’s oldest promise: that every generation must fight, in its own language, for freedom and fairness.

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Musharraf Tansen is a doctoral researcher at the University of Dhaka.