On Tuesday, Daniel Kvamin, Jørn Hoyle and Chris Medina led 20 Norwegian artists in a vocal action against Israel's participation in the Eurovision contest.
– I'm almost speechless, says Jørn Hoel to VG.
– What is happening in Palestine is very horrific and we cannot sit and watch without doing anything, says Daniel Kvamin.
The events take place at Operataket in Oslo on Tuesday morning at 09.15.
A press release from the Action Group for Palestine said that 538 Norwegian artists and over 4,000 artists from the Nordic countries have signed a petition demanding that Israel be banned from this year's Eurovision Song Contest due to its ongoing human rights violations.
International law.
– Not understood
– It's very difficult to talk about this. Simply because what is happening in Gaza now is very bad. It is incomprehensible that the world does not react more to this, says Jörn Höll.
He really hopes that Norway will help ensure that Israel is not allowed to participate in this year's Eurovision, which will be held in Malmö between May 7 and 11.
– It is simply not appropriate to pretend that nothing is happening in Palestine and for Israel to be allowed to participate in an event that many associate with something fun.
Jörn Hoyle assures VG that this has nothing to do with hatred of Jews.
-We have to show where we stand morally
continues Daniel Kvamin, who also heads several Norwegian artists who signed the petition – and who is performing at Operaytaket on Tuesday.
– It is important that we as artists show our moral stance, says Kvamin.
He goes on to say that what is happening is so horrific, that you can't just sit and watch.
– I definitely don't feel good.
The Action Group for Palestine announces that Nordahl will be sung by a celebrity choir
Grieg's war-decisive “Til Ungdommen” is repeated as many times as possible during the opera's 15-minute surface.
The Action Group for Palestine believes this is important and correct
NRK is encouraging the EBU, which is behind the competition, to ban Israel as they did before excluding Russia in 2022. But NRK has refused to do so.
Charlo Halvorsen, NRK's entertainment editor, previously told VG that NRK as a broadcaster is not the one that can boycott:
– NRK cannot call for a cultural boycott. This is not within our mandate as a broadcaster. It would be completely impossible for us. We cover conflicts in the Middle East, and if we as a broadcasting company were to take a position in a conflict, it would be difficult for us to be impartial.
“Infuriatingly humble web fan. Writer. Alcohol geek. Passionate explorer. Evil problem solver. Incurable zombie expert.”
