Eurovision 2022: The Denial – VG
The indifferent nonsense around the board of directors of the EBU – European Broadcasting Union – is almost unbelievable.
This is a comment. The commentary expresses the writer’s position
Where the rest of Europe – and the world – condemns Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in the strongest terms and imposes the most extensive sanctions in history against a country, events of Eurovision in Turin in May still invite the occupying power to party.
“Eurovision Song Contest” is a non-political event, “said a statement from EBU headquarters.
particular.
“May 14, 2016. It was the date when the Eurovision Song Contest” lost its innocence and became political. “
These are the words I wrote when Ukrainian Susana “Jamala” Jamaladinova won Eurovision in Stockholm in 2016. And guess who they defeated at the finish line in history’s most exciting Eurovision final?
Yep, Russia.
Load it “1944”. Not because it was the 70th anniversary of the year. But two years earlier – in 2014 – Russia had annexed the Crimean peninsula in the Black Sea in Ukraine.
Because it was 70 years since the despot Joseph Stalin deported all ethnic Crimean Tatars away from Crimea and the Black Sea, most to Uzbekistan.
So a little closer to Siberia.
The pretext was a suspicion that the Crimean Tatars collaborated with Germany’s Nazis before and during World War II.
The political power lines of history are crossed these days.
Jamala is herself a Crimean Tatar and also used her own language when she was full performed «1944» until victory in Stockholm six years ago.
Her own tippold mother was among those deported. It was not until 23 years later, in 1967, that the first Crimean Tatars were allowed to return to Crimea.
The EBU knows all this. And also knew in 2016. If we are to believe the EBU’s consistent – stubborn, someone will say – line that Eurovision is a «non-political cultural event», Jamala and Ukraine should not host the final and won in 2016.
But Ukraine came, they won and everyone was happy.
Or?
The following year, in 2017, Jamala’s marginal victory over Russia was to be avenged in Kyiv the year before. But Ukraine gave the thumbs down for entry clearance to the Russian participant.
Then Russia can not participate, the EBU thought.
And still the EBU does not see anything political with this icy Eurovision rift between Russia and Ukraine, in the political climate that has been since 2014?
In 2017, by the way, Russia responded to the insult by giving a big f … in broadcasting the Eurovision final from Kyiv to the Russian people.
What happens if Russia’s contribution nevertheless appears in Turin in May?
I am willing to bet quite a lot that the same thing will happen as during Eurovision in Copenhagen in 2014, right after Russia had annexed the Crimean peninsula from Ukrainian territory.
Every time Russia got points, they were greeted with whistling and booing, both from the audience in the hall and in the press room.
Believe me, I was there myself.
But I chose to ignore the Russian press with the Russian flag draped over my shoulders.
Today I am happy about it.
At the same time, Russia’s delegation will pose a security threat that the EBU obviously does not think about – this is a non-political event, it must be known.
The same reassuring words we got from the EBU when large parts of the Nordic press chose to follow the Eurovision final from a meeting room at a nearby hotel in Tel Aviv in 2019, because VG and Aftonbladet revealed revealing shortcomings in security checks on the way to the arena.
Everything was safe, we were told.
We chose to trust ourselves.
And what about the tension that will arise in Turin in May between Russia and the participating nations that share borders with Ukraine; Romania, Moldova and Poland?
And in the face of the nations that also border Putin’s empire, and who are now – quite surrealistically – afraid of their own nation’s independence, of how far Putin is willing to go; Georgia, Azerbaijan, Estonia, Latvia, Finland, Lithuania and Poland (again)?
And of course Ukraine.
And Norway.
SVT’s head Hanna Stjärne – a solid supporter of the EBU, the world’s largest association of national television and radio companies – was ready on Thursday in her invitation to this year’s Eurovision organizers; think about it!
NRK should be just as clear in what they are doing now. UEFA wants to move the Champions League final away from St.Petersburg, Norwegian sports heroes do not want to end the winter season in Russia.
Discussions about sanctions and boycotts are a topic everywhere, but not at the EBU.
But it is allowed to change your mind, as Swedish Hanna Stjärne also says.
For these (a) political question is as if the EBU’s future vision of Eurovision, as the united Eurovision as the last 24 hours has got its fists in the middle of the face.