The Groot-Nederlandse Studentenvereniging (Great Netherlands Student Association, GNSV) will not be attending Radboud University's introduction market after one of their members was arrested last week as a terror suspect. The association has withdrawn from the event.

Right-conservative student association GNSV will not be at Radboud University’s introduction market this year. The association has withdrawn from the event, a University spokesperson told Vox. The association has informed that it is withdrawing for safety reasons.

The reason for this is the recent arrest of a member of GNSV. Last Thursday, a 24-year-old man, member of the controversial nationalist Geuzenbond, was arrested on suspicion of preparing a terrorist crime, possession of illegal weapons, and manufacturing of arms and ammunition. Later this weekend, it became apparent that the man was also a member of GNSV.

Democratic debate

Daan Meershoek, Chair of the Nijmegen branch of GNSV, announced earlier that the member has been suspended pending the legal process and that ‘violence in no way fits into the democratic debate in which the association participates.’

Information from Vox revealed that the suspect was present at some activities organised by the Nijmegen branch of GNSV, including the 2023 introduction market. It is as yet unknown whether the suspect is also a student in the City on the Waal. Radboud University and HAN University of Applied Sciences (HAN) may not answer that question for privacy reasons. No information can be found online to indicate that the man is studying in Nijmegen.

Code of Conduct

Until recently, the association was welcome at the introduction market, where first-year students are introduced to Nijmegen associations. ‘For admission to that market, two things are taken into consideration,’ explained a University spokesperson. ‘Whether an organisation is prohibited by law or not, and whether they uphold our Code of Conduct. Based on those two criteria, GNSV was welcome for the past two years. And until the arrest of last Thursday, that was also the case for this year.’

Asked whether GNSV was still welcome at the introduction market following the arrest, the spokesperson would not answer. ‘Before we had a chance to reconsider our choice, GNSV had already withdrawn.’

What that means for the coming years is as yet unclear. ‘We are going to evaluate whether the criteria we currently use for allowing associations into the introduction market are still adequate,’ the spokesperson said.