A demonstration by the Nationalist Students Association, NSV, in Ghent on 27 March has resulted in 27 administrative arrests and a judicial investigation into a possible Nazi salute, according to Mayor Mathias De Clercq.

Footage from the demonstration, held under the slogan ‘Generation Remigration,’ showed a participant extending an arm in what appeared to be a Nazi salute. On 29 March, police filed a report, and the Ghent prosecutor’s office initiated an investigation.

The  NSV demonstration attracted about 450 protesters. A rival ‘Solidarity Parade,’ held elsewhere in Ghent on the same day, drew some 1,000 participants.

The demonstration and counter-demonstration prompted an increased police presence and preventative checks at train stations. According to senior police officials, the force had received information that demonstrators from Brussels, Antwerp, Liège and other areas had arrived in Ghent with a view to creating disturbances.

During the protest, 27 individuals were placed under administrative arrest, with police intervening when participants attempted to conceal their identities with balaclavas or scarves. Police reported no direct confrontations between opposing groups and noted no reports of racist remarks or physical aggression at the event.

According to Mayor De Clerq, police advised two businesses to keep their customers inside temporarily to prevent provocations. However, no establishments were forced to close, nor were bystanders asked to leave.

The Ghent mayor defended his decision to allow the NSV demonstration, citing the right to protest and freedom of expression, while distancing himself from the protest’s message, calling it “abhorrent” and “nasty.”

Mayor De Clerq has since filed a complaint with the prosecutor’s office regarding an inciting NSV flyer, questioning whether it incited hatred. This investigation is ongoing.

The mayor also stressed that the approval of the March protest did not guarantee permission for similar demonstrations in the future.

Each new request will be reviewed based on police findings, and future decisions will consider whether the events of 27 March necessitate a negative recommendation, he explained.