Time is of the essence. On 17 February, Belgium will have been without a government for 289 days, equalling the world record set by Iraq. Already, Belgium has overtaken the record for the longest time spent on negotiations to form a government, set by the Netherlands at 208 days in 1977. By Sunday, Belgium had chalked up 224 days of stalemate.

The demonstration was the idea of a group of young people, one of them the son of a federal minister, who set up a Facebook page that rapidly attracted thousands of supporters. Politicians were asked to stay away, as the march was intended to be non-political, but some demonstrators nevertheless carried signs attacking the main politicians in the ongoing talks: N-VA party president Bart De Wever and French-speaking socialist party president Elio Di Rupo.

Following the success of the event, politicians made public statements on Sunday. Steven Vanackere, the acting interior minister, said the demonstration was a "clear signal to politicians" of "collective reproach".

"A government, but not at any price," said Di Rupo on RTL television. "Don't forget that we have to form a government with a party whose goal is the independence of Flanders."

On Saturday evening before the march, De Wever commented: "No-one who is really concerned about the people's welfare can go on being satisfied with the status quo. We do indeed need a government, but we need one that can tackle the major problems of the country."

Finance minister and MR leader Didier Reynders called on his fellow politicians to listen to the calls of the protesters and warned against making political capital out of the march. Alexander De Croo, leader of Open VLD, which has not taken part in the negotiations, said it was "now time for all politicians to begin negotiating in a serious manner."

Caroline Gennez, head of the Flemish socialist party, pointed out the unique character of the Belgian march: "People usually demonstrate against a government or against policies, but this was a case of demonstrating for a government," she said.

International attention
The march was closely followed by the international media. French daily Le Monde reported that Dutch and French speakers were united and noted the presence of "a good number" of Belgian flags, something its correspondent described as "a symbol of a unitary Belgium, now outmoded by circumstances".

The BBC put the number of those attending at 50,000 and spoke repeatedly of fears that Belgium could split, a point also made by The New York Times. The Guardian, meanwhile, recalled the Belgian march in November 2007, when 35,000 demonstrated in protest at the 161 days of deadlock in the attempt to form a government. Most newspapers also pointed to the uneasiness of the financial markets at the continuing lack of a government.

The SHAME protest in figures

34,000
participants, according to police (45,000 according to organisers)
44%
came from Brussels
35%
came from Wallonia
21%
came from Flanders

The Flemish papers on the protest

Serious protest
"Parties who don't take the message seriously are making a mistake. Parties who say they get it and call on others to act are just as wrong. It's not the fault of others. It's their collective fault."
Guy Tegenbos, De Standaard

New direction
"Politicians, unionists, associations and the student movement: none of them knew what to make of this demonstration. Forty thousand people had no need of their guidance to bring them out on
the streets."
Bart Eeckhout, De Morgen

State reform
"Only when people at every political level face up to their responsibilities and accept the consequences
of their own decisions can we arrive at a solution. That implies a reform of the state. Responsible politicians know that. It is now time for them to do
something about it."
Eric Donckier, Het Belang van Limburg

Sick of games
"You can tell them a thousand times that the caretaker government has everything under control and point out that Kris Peeters goes on with his Flemish government, but evidently they're not
buying it anymore."
Liesbeth Van Impe, Het Nieuwsblad