Sweden’s security situation has sparked a debate regarding the Eurovision Song Contest.
Next spring’s Eurovision will be held in Malmö, Sweden. However, the arrangements are overshadowed by the country’s security situation.
Malmö police spokesperson Nils Norling told Sveriges Radio in the interview that the war in Gaza also has an impact on Sweden.
– If we look at the situation in Malmö over the last few months, we notice that the number of hate crimes has increased somewhat. We see demonstrations every day, most of them pro-Palestine. We cannot rule out the possibility that people will try to implement different expressions of opinion, Norling commented.
Loreen sang herself the Eurovision winner this spring in Liverpool. PDO
According to the Malmö police, there is no immediate threat to Eurovision. However, he points out that as the competition approaches, the police’s intelligence work also increases.
Malmö has been the host city of Eurovision twice. The first time happened in 1992 and the second in 2013.
Representative of the city of Malmö Karin Karlsson said in a radio interview that the situation is much more tense than last time. In his opinion, it is important to follow the instructions of the authorities and act preventively.
Finland’s representative for next spring’s singing competition will be chosen at the finals of the New Music Competition in February. This year, Finland was represented by Käärijä with a song Cha cha cha. The singer finished second in the final, collecting 526 points. The victory was taken by the representative of Sweden Loreen with a song Tattoo.
Krista Siegfrids represented Finland at the Eurovision Song Contest in Malmö in spring 2013. PDO
High threat level
The Swedish security police Säpo raised the country’s terrorism threat level to the second highest level in August. The last time the threat level was as high was in 2015–2016. At that time, the terrorist organization Isis urged its supporters to commit terrorist attacks in Europe.
– The situation has deteriorated, and this will last a long time, Säpo’s chief Charlotte von Essen told a press conference in August.
The terrorist organization Al-Qaeda has called on its members to avenge the burning of the Koran in Sweden.
In October, two Swedish football fans were shot in Brussels. The victims were wearing Swedish jerseys. According to official information, the perpetrator chose his victims based on their nationality.
In Sweden, there have been several incidents related to gang violence recently, in which people have died or been injured. In October, the police declared a “national emergency” throughout the country. In the situation, the police cooperates with, for example, the Swedish Defense Forces.