Nemo confuses values ​​with political stance

Nemo came into the hall with the flag of the LGBTQ+ community, but held back from making any statements about the protests and the obvious politicization of the competition. “I hope the contest keeps its promises and promotes peace,” was one of Nemo’s general statements, and that we just have to talk to each other.

In the meantime, however, Nemo seems to have undergone a striking change in political consciousness. Because with a lot of aplomb, Nemo announced on Instagram that he wanted to return the ESC victory trophy.

It no longer belongs to him because Israel’s exclusion was debated, but the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) decided that the country, or rather the Israeli broadcaster Kan, should be represented in Vienna again next year: “The point is,” says Nemo, “that the competition was repeatedly used to improve the image of a state that is accused of serious misconduct, while the EBU insisted that Eurovision was apolitical.”

Nemo added: “And if participating countries withdraw because of this contradiction, it should be clear that something is fundamentally wrong.” Of course, one wonders what prompted Nemo 2024, after several months of the Gaza War and the participation of his Israeli competitor Edan Golan, to also sing, then be celebrated for first place and still find it all fundamentally right.

Was it the boycott of broadcasters from Spain, the Netherlands, which co-founded the competition in 1956, Slovenia, Ireland and most recently Iceland that led to this change of heart? Nemo speaks on Instagram about “unity, inclusion and dignity for all”, which would define and distinguish the ESC, but these ideals are now being trampled on by the EBU because of Israel’s participation. “If the values ​​we celebrate on stage are not lived off stage, even the most beautiful songs become meaningless.”

Is the ESC still a space for “the common thing”?

But Nemo now confuses “values” with political attitudes and doesn’t seem to want to accept unity, inclusion and dignity for everyone. Especially for the Israeli participants, but also for those who have no objection to further participation in the ESC.

This return of a winner’s trophy is nothing more than a symbolic gesture, which in itself may have some weight, but above all it perpetuates a Bokyott movement that is not interested in peace, unity and inclusion. There is a ceasefire in Gaza, but it is simply more convenient not to leave the positions once taken or, in the case of Nemo, to suddenly occupy them for whatever motives.

The ESC has long been much bigger than the musicians who win it, which is why Nemo’s campaign will probably have no consequences for the competition. But it is an almost touching attempt to depoliticize the ESC again and prevent further damage to it when its director Martin Green now writes in an open letter to the fans published on Thursday to respect the position and decision of the boycotting broadcasters in Spain, the Netherlands, Slovenia, Ireland and Iceland and to hope for their speedy return.

In a divided world, Green said, the competition’s mission is to “provide a space in which millions of people can celebrate what they have in common.” But this commonality is now becoming less and less.