It seems that 2019 might be the year of the protest.

In Prague last week, Czechs gathered in the largest demonstration since the fall of the Iron Curtain to demand the resignation of their prime minister over corruption accusations.

Not two weeks earlier, around a million people demonstrated in Hong Kong against a law that would permit extradition to mainland China, forcing the government to back down.

In Kazakhstan, mass protests have led to thousands of arrests. And in Algeria, President Abdelaziz Bouteflika left office in April after protests; President Omar al-Bashir of Sudan followed a few days later.

The motives for each uprising are unique. But experts say there is reason to believe they are also manifestations of a global trend in which masses of ordinary citizens are demanding more accountability from those in power.