Belgian Eurovision participation unclear as CD&V and Vooruit back calls to ban Israel
The Flemish governing parties CD&V and Vooruit demand that Israel be banned from the Eurovision Song Contest and want Flanders to take a stand. The French-language broadcaster RTBF, which is responsible for Belgium's entry next year, plans to wait until December to decide on participation in the contest.
The Dutch broadcaster AVROTROS said on Friday that the Netherlands would not participate in the contest as long as Israel is allowed to participate by the organiser EBU. Ireland had taken a similar position.
CD&V now wants Belgian broadcasters VRT and RTBF, together with all other public broadcasters in Europe, to send a clear signal that Israel cannot participate.
“When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, it was decided to ban Russia, which was undoubtedly the right decision,” said Flemish MP Gilles Bultinck of Christian democracts CD&V. “The same consistent line must be applied to all countries that wilfully commit large-scale violations of international law and human rights. Israel therefore no longer has a place in the Eurovision Song Contest.”
Katia Segers of socialist party Vooruit takes a similar position. “As a member of the EBU, the VRT must insist that Israel not be allowed to participate, together with the RTBF and the other members of the EBU,” she said. “The reason the EBU has not done so itself until now is because Israel is one of the major sponsors of the Song Contest.”
The RTBF announced that it would wait for the next meeting of the EBU in December before making a decision. “The RTBF is continuing to make preparations for the next edition and is working on the selection of candidates,” a spokesperson said on Friday.
“This is a long-term project and not something that can be improvised. Whether or not we will participate in the 2026 edition will be decided after the EBU's general meeting in December.”
Illustration © PHOTO APAPICTUREDESK
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