Well-known musicians demand Yle to boycott Eurovision

More and more people are demanding the European Broadcasting Union to exclude Israel from Eurovision. PDO

Yle is asked to boycott Eurovision. With a petition, the players in the music industry demand Yle to put pressure on the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) to exclude Israel from Eurovision. The reason for the demands is the conflict in the Middle East.

The petition was launched by a working group consisting of actors in the music industry. A freelance musician belonging to that group Lukas Korpelainen tells Helsingin Sanomat that they monitor signatures and their number. The petition had more than 1,200 signatories on Friday afternoon.

Finnish artists, among others, have shared the petition on social media Paleface, Vesta and Alexandra. The petition has been signed by, among others, the guitarist of the band Olavi Uusivirta Timo Kämäräinen.

– At the moment, the situation in Gaza is completely unsustainable. Israel’s human rights violations have continued for years and escalated to such a level that the country’s participation in Eurovision does not seem reasonable, Kämäräinen explains to the magazine.

Yle has so far not commented on the musicians’ demands. In December, the UMK competition published its own position on the prevailing debate about Israel and Eurovision in its Instagram stories.

– The situation in the Middle East is really shocking and serious, and it also worries the UMK working group.

– UMK, organized by Yle, has already grown into such a big program that it will be organized regardless of whether Finland participates in Eurovision or not. Regarding the Eurovision, Yle’s management is closely monitoring the situation and holding discussions with the EBU and other Nordic countries.

The EBU announced in December that it had decided to allow Israel to participate in the competition. The EBU justified its decision by saying that Eurovision is a competition of public broadcasting companies, not governments.

Source: HS