RTÉ receives 500 emails calling on the broadcaster to boycott Eurovision 2024 due to Israel's involvement

Almost 500 emails have been sent to RTÉ calling for a boycott of the 2024 Eurovision due to Israel’s involvement in the song contest as of yesterday.

RTÉ is Ireland’s representative broadcaster at the Eurovision Song Contest and it has been urged in these emails to “immediately withdraw support and participation in the contest next year, if Israel is permitted to compete”.

The organisers of the Eurovision have described it as a "competition for broadcasters – not governments".

Israel was expected, as usual, to take part in the contest – but the campaign to launch an Irish boycott began in light of official confirmation last week of the 37 countries to take part in next year’s contest in the Swedish city of Malmö.

The email template draws parallels between the 2022 exclusion of Russia due to its invasion of Ukraine saying: "In 2022, Russia was excluded from the competition after their invasion of Ukraine, due to pressure from participating nations who wanted to stand against those atrocities. This sent a powerful message of solidarity to the citizens of Ukraine, and showed the world that Eurovision stands for unity and peace. The people of Palestine deserve to hear that message".

The email also states that "Israel's participation in the contest next year brings the entire competition into disrepute".

Continuing, the email asserts: "At a minimum, our participation shows an indifference towards the ongoing human rights abuses, alleged breaches of international law and attempted genocide and ethnic cleansing currently being conducted by the Israeli government in Palestine".

The Eurovision Song Contest is organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU).

In the immediate aftermath of the 2022 Ukraine invasion, the EBU said it was “monitoring the situation” and that Russia remained in that year’s competition, however, that decision was reversed within 24 hours however.

This year after the 7 October attacks by Hamas on Israel, which killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilian,  Israel then began a relentless bombardment and ground invasion that has killed close to 19,000 people.

The war, now in its third month, has killed over 10,000 children according to the Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor, while over 1.9 million people have been displaced since the conflict began.

A spokesperson for RTÉ told The Journal that: “RTÉ has always approached the event in the spirit in which it was founded – which is a non-political contest designed to unite audiences and bring people together through a shared love of music and entertainment.

The spokesperson said: "37 nations, including Ireland, will take part in the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest".

They also highlighted that no other national broadcasters were planning on boycotting the  2024 Eurovision song contest: "RTÉ is not aware of any participating Public Service Broadcaster who is planning to boycott the upcoming Eurovision Song Contest.”

The email template acknowledges that while a Eurovision boycott will not stop the violence in Gaza, it says that: "it will serve as a symbol of solidarity with the Palestinian people, prove we are a nation committed to human rights for all, and show a total condemnation and rejection of Israel's current violent campaign, and colonial violence everywhere".