MusicSwedish singer Eric Saade (33) made a political statement on Tuesday evening during the first semi-final of the Eurovision Song Contest by tying an arafat scarf around his wrist. The Irish entry, Bambie Thug (31), also wanted to show support for the victims in the Gaza Strip, but was turned down by the organization. This prohibits all political statements, although this ban is not always successfully complied with.
Sweden’s Eric Saade, who took part in the Eurovision Song Contest in 2011, opened the first semi-final of the song contest on Tuesday together with Chanel and Eleni Foureira. However, all attention was focused on the scarf he had tied around his wrist: a keffiyeh (also called arafats scarf), which is often used as a headgear in Arab countries. With the garment he wanted to subtly express his support for the Palestinian people. However, that was against the wishes of the EBU, the organization behind the Eurovision Song Contest. All political statements are prohibited during the song festival. The organizer is therefore sorry that he broke the rules. “The Eurovision Song Contest is a live program. Everyone who performs is aware of the rules and we regret that Eric Saade has chosen this,” he said. Saade himself said on social media: “Reminder: it is only love. We are united by music.”
It wouldn’t have mattered much if there had been another artist who had broken the ban. Irish artist Bambie Thug also wanted to express support for the victims of the war in Gaza. For example, during rehearsals, Bambie Thug had ‘ceasefire’ (ceasefire) and ‘freedom for Palestine’ written on his body in the Irish Ogham alphabet, but the artist was withdrawn by the organization. “It was very important to me because I am for justice and peace,” Thug said after the first semi-final. “Unfortunately I had to change the message to just ‘crown the witch’ on the instructions of the EBU.”
LOOK. BBC shared a clip of Eric Saade’s performance, showing the scarf
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It is not the first time that an artist has made a political statement during the Eurovision Song Contest. In 2019, the Icelandic group Hatari waved Palestinian flags during the announcement of the points. They were fined 5,000 euros for that. In 2022, Ukraine took home the victory. Oleh Psiuk, the frontman of Kalush Orchestra, took the opportunity to shout “Help Azovstal, now” after his performance. That was a reference to the Ukrainian fighters who were besieged at the Azovstal steel factory in Mariupol. The organization then exceptionally decided not to take any measures against the group, given the “deep feelings regarding Ukraine at this time.”
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Tags: Political messages Eurovision Song Contest prohibited organization fails stop Eurovision songfestival
