Photo: Alma Bengtsson / EBU

The EBU’s decision to disqualify The Netherlands, represented this year by Joost Klein, upset numerous Eurovision fans worldwide. And it has not gone unnoticed by Eurovision artists and their broadcasters. Olivera Kovačević, the head of entertainment at Serbian broadcaster RTS, spoke about the situation on the show Među nama on TV Nova, declaring that the EBU’s decision was too harsh.

 

The Netherlands’ disqualification 

On Friday evening, approximately 30 minutes before the jury final, the EBU announced that Joost Klein, representing The Netherlands, would not perform in that night’s jury show, which contributes to 50% of the final score. This decision stemmed from its ongoing investigation into “a reported incident.” While the EBU was initially vague about the nature of “the incident,” it was revealed that the Malmö police were on-site conducting an investigation.

According to our bloggers at the event, they witnessed the Netherlands’ Eurovision 2024 singer participating in the opening flag parade during the afternoon dress rehearsal. This indicates that the EBU made a sudden decision sometime between the flag parade and his scheduled rehearsal, following Luxembourg in spot 4 and just before Israel in spot 6. The EBU subsequently announced that The Netherlands would not participate in any rehearsals until further notice.

Following the news, Dov Gil-Har, a news anchor at Israel’s state broadcaster, approached the Dutch bluebird dancer with a camera, saying, “Where were you? We missed you on stage.” A security guard for the Dutch team is heard saying, “What are you doing? Why are you doing that?” and “Can you please stop that.” Fans recalled that the night before — at the Semi-Final 2 qualifiers press conference — Joost insisted that the Israeli representative, Eden Golan, should be made to respond to a question about whether the presence of Israel posed a security risk to the event and the contestants. The camera incident was, no doubt, stoking existing tension. 

On the day of the Grand Final, the EBU announced that the Netherlands was disqualified from the contest. The EBU stated that the disqualification was based on a complaint from a member of the Swedish crew who felt threatened by Joost Klein. Dutch broadcaster AVROTROS issued a statement providing details on the exact events that occurred:

Despite AVROTROS’s efforts to find a solution, the EBU maintained their decision to disqualify the Netherlands. On Sunday the EBU updated their initial statement regarding the reasoning behind the disqualification, holding firm in their position but still not providing the details that all Eurovision fans are eagerly awaiting:

(…)

Joost’s behaviour was in clear breach of Contest rules which are designed to ensure there is a safe working environment for all staff and to protect the production. We are not pre-judging the legal process but, given the circumstances of what occurred and the fact that the police case will shortly be handed to the prosecutor, it would not have been appropriate for Joost to participate in the Grand Final.

The decision to exclude him was backed by the Contest’s governing body of Members – the Eurovision Song Contest Reference Group – and unanimously supported by the EBU Executive Board, following a thorough internal investigation.

The version of events released in some public comments and on social media does not correspond with the statements shared with us and the Swedish Police by staff and witnesses. However, the matter is now subject to legal proceedings and there is unfortunately nothing further we can add at this stage.

(…)

Full statement bellow: 

Olivera Kovačević considers the punishment too harsh

Serbia has entered the debate with Olivera Kovačević, head of entertainment at RTS and the supervisor of the Serbian national selection, announcing that they will write to the EBU demanding an explanation for Joost Klein’s disqualification. Kovačević believes the punishment was too harsh, stating that even if the EBU’s account of the incident is accurate, the penalty is “extreme,” especially considering how close it was to the Grand Final. She emphasized that rehearsals are precisely for instances when a contestant cannot be present at the venue, suggesting that the EBU could have streamed Joost’s rehearsal clip if they really wanted to prevent him from entering the arena. Kovačević said that RTS will not remain silent and will demand a thorough explanation from the EBU. She also highlighted the contest’s importance for Serbia, noting that the semi-finals were popular and the Grand Final attracted two million viewers in the country. 

She also addressed Israel’s participation in Eurovision by stating that she doesn’t find their participation just, even if they were the victims in the beginning, and also that she suspects an organized voting campaign in the Western Europe Countries:  “We can discuss whether Israel’s participation is just, Israel was attacked first and may have been the victim in the beginning, however with how the situation has developed, with every dead Palestinian child…Israel is slowly losing its right to participate [in international events], more importantly it’s losing the media war, as much as people say that there’s an Israeli [propaganda] push, you can’t sell a product which is very bad. Israel received the highest marks almost exclusively from Western European countries, there’s also a possibility there was an organized voting campaign.”

 

 

The other contestants reactions following the disqualification

The EBU’s decision sparked a wave of reactions as Eurovision fans expressed outrage, leaving numerous comments on all Eurovision and EBU social media platforms in support of Joost Klein. Käärijä, the Finnish representative from the previous year who was selected to announce the jury points this year, declared on the evening of the Grand Final that he would not announce the Finnish votes: “I have decided not to participate as the spokesperson for the Finnish jury in tonight’s Eurovision finale. Giving out the points tonight does not feel right.” Eurovision fans suspected his decision was related to the disqualification of the Netherlands from the contest, as Käärijä and Joost are known to be friends.

Eurovision contestants were asked about the decision, and some expressed their opinions. The Estonian representatives, 5miinust / puuluup, commented to the Dutch press: “It’s sad he’s gone. As we said before, he was the only one relaxed.” They had previously expressed their belief that the Netherlands could win.

Dons, the Latvian representative, also expressed his regret towards the Netherlands disqualification by stating to the Dutch press: “That would be fun (Joost performing), He’s always fun. And, I don’t know what happened, because I’m not on social media today that much but he’s an incredible person. He’s a very very loving guy. And I wish him all the best and Joost, if you see this, pick up the phone, I’m calling you tomorrow.”

 

The representative of Albania, Besa, competed in the 2nd Semifinal alongside The Netherlands. As the EBU investigation unfolded, Besa took to social media with a series of posts and replies, openly expressing her support for the Netherlands and their contestant. On the day of the Grand Final, she shared her thoughts on the escalating events that transpired from the Second Semifinal until the Grand Final night. Besa was among the contestants who openly advocated for the Netherlands to be allowed to perform in the Grand Final.

She strongly asserted that the EBU’s decision, made while the investigation was still ongoing, was wrong and artistically unfair. She emphasized that if Joost Klein were found guilty, he should be appropriately punished. However, she defended his right not to be judged without evidence and to avoid disproportionate punishment for any potential wrongdoing.

Meanwhile, Joost Klein’s performance from the second semifinal has garnered 8.9 million views on YouTube, making it the most viewed performance from the Second Semi-Final. Currently, “Europapa” is at #22 in the Top 50 Global chart on Spotify and #50 in the Top 50 Viral chart on Spotify. In the Netherlands, the song holds the position of #9 in the Top 50 Viral chart and #1 in the Top 50 Netherlands chart on Spotify.

 

What are your thoughts regarding the Netherlands disqualification? Let us know in the comments below. 

 

 

 

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Retkoceri
Retkoceri
4 months ago

thanks to the EBU albanians and serbians finally agree on something, truely united by music

BiCHOTA
BiCHOTA
4 months ago
Reply to  Retkoceri

Finally something wholesome from this mess of an event this year’s contest turned out to be

Seatassigner
Seatassigner
4 months ago

The EBU would want Joost to perform as one of the favorites and a big audience pull. Once the police are involved I am sure they had little option.

Maria
Maria
4 months ago

I keep thinking about it. Let’s say it was Loreen who made an angry gesture towards the camera of a male photographer after he filmed her backstage several times, without her consent, would they have disqualified her?

Karl
Karl
4 months ago

BREAKING: Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs admits to vote manipulation in other countries to boost Eden Golan’s televote score, as reported by The Times of Israel and The Grayzone.

Karl
Karl
4 months ago
Reply to  Karl

Link:
thegrayzone . com/2024/05/14/israel-astroturfed-eurovision-vote/

Seddik
Seddik
4 months ago

As I know a lot of people are eager to know what happened with Joost that led to his disqualification. So I’d like to share an eyewitness account that was recounted yesterday in a Dutch talk show. This talk show caters to a rather angry demographic and its content is often negative in nature. They have also had it in Joost from the moment he released Europapa. Yesterday’s episode was no difference, but remarkably enough the eyewitness story that was shared exonerates Joost from the most serious accusations that we have seen in the media. So, according to this eyewitness… Read more »

Lisa
Lisa
4 months ago
Reply to  Seddik

What talkshow was that? Ongehoord Nieuws or something like that? And how come this person was back stage and able to eye witness this thing? And why hasn’t he been on any other (main stream) talk shows in the Netherlands? Those questions aside: that sounds like a probable cause of events.

Boo
Boo
4 months ago

EUROVISION 2014 will not end until this is settled!!!

Boo
Boo
4 months ago
Reply to  Boo

*2024

Cassette
Cassette
4 months ago

It’s quite clear the Israeli’s had it out for him after his comment in the semi final press conference and they succeeded to ban him unfortunately.

Azuro
Azuro
4 months ago

Will wiwi be covering the trial as well? Perhaps interviewing joost from cell block d ?

Barry
Barry
4 months ago
Reply to  Azuro

He’s already back in NL.

Azuro
Azuro
4 months ago
Reply to  Barry

So what are you suggesting he becomes an international fugitive.

To be fair even if he was some on this site would still side with him.

Barry
Barry
4 months ago
Reply to  Azuro

If he had done something really bad, he wouldn’t have been allowed to leave the country. So it probably won’t be that bad.

Boo
Boo
4 months ago
Reply to  Azuro

What is it with wiwiblog? So many trolls

Sally
Sally
4 months ago

I read earlier today in a Swedish newspaper that Joost was involved in more than one incident. If that turns out to be true, then yes, he should have gone. We likely won’t know what actually happened until the prosecutors lay charges – if they ever do.

But, damn, the EBU couldn’t really have cocked up this situation any worse than they did and continue to do. Certainly someone in the organization would know something about communication and public relations.

Eyal
Eyal
4 months ago
Reply to  Sally

Maybe their strategy is to say nothing, not in the media anyway.

Seddik
Seddik
4 months ago
Reply to  Sally

If that Swedish newspaper is Aftonbladet, I wouldn’t attach any importance to it. The hat they’re pulling this sh*t from seems bottomless.

Voix
Voix
4 months ago

Where are all the comments that were pro Israel? Did certain someone stop paying trolls after they even failed to win the televote as they wanted to?

Ricardo
Ricardo
4 months ago
Reply to  Voix

They are distracted in other threads.

AMAAN STORM
AMAAN STORM
4 months ago
Reply to  Voix

They have no need to pay for the bots anymore, because the competition is over and the platform to spread their propaganda is now no more. They’ll be working on the next manipulation as we speak. Other than that, give it 300+ days and they’ll be back at it again on here lol

Melissa
Melissa
4 months ago
Reply to  AMAAN STORM

The 20 minus votes in every pro-pal comment and the 20 plus votes on every unhinged and angry pro-israel comment in other threads speaks to the fact they are still botting these threads.

Ricardo
Ricardo
4 months ago
Reply to  Melissa

And we will use those 20+ minus votes as a badge of honor.

Lila Ramonda
Lila Ramonda
4 months ago

I have two theories :
1. They disqualified Joost to stir Drama that Israel wont win because people are more biased and they just took that opportunity
2. They let Switzerland win instead of croatia because Switzerland is wealthier and they can provide better security because no one is gotta know how everything is going to turn out next year

Ricardo
Ricardo
4 months ago
Reply to  Lila Ramonda

Switzerland won fair and square.

Joost was wronged because of the question “Why not?” during the press conference for the second semi-final.

Anonymous91
Anonymous91
4 months ago
Reply to  Lila Ramonda

either Flemming or Chef’Special or Blaudzun if we decide to participate after all, one of those i want now from us

Lisa
Lisa
4 months ago
Reply to  Lila Ramonda

I don’t think there was an intention to let Switzerland win. The juries went for this because it was technically an amazing performance, those flawless vocals combined with that complex choreography, and the song was also a very decent composition. Croatia did well also with their song composition and vocals, but the choreo was not as challenging.

Jonas
Jonas
4 months ago

On a positive note, Sweden didn’t win.

The whole opening-voting-at-the-start-of-the-show scam didn’t work.

We can forget about THAT conspiracy now… right? Perhaps not imagine the worst possible motives in every scenario… right?

Right?

Jonas
Jonas
4 months ago
Reply to  Jonas

Right?

Jonas
Jonas
4 months ago
Reply to  Jonas

*tumbleweeds*

Ricardo
Ricardo
4 months ago
Reply to  Jonas

And they are relieved about it. Imagine dealing with the drama all over again. I think the Swedes are going to self-sabotage in the coming years.

Jonas
Jonas
4 months ago
Reply to  Ricardo

If Sweden win again, Petra will go into a witness protecton program. Christer Björkman will still be there, though.

Ari
Ari
4 months ago
Reply to  Jonas

That man will outlive Eurovision. Possibly bury it himself.

Ricardo
Ricardo
4 months ago
Reply to  Jonas

Yes, we like to trash talk Bjorkman. That man is a leech.

Lisa
Lisa
4 months ago
Reply to  Ricardo

I think we should thank Sweden for hosting the show under these difficult circumstances, with all the demonstrations going on etcera. The EBU put them in this position by allowing Israel to compete. Everybody knew it was going to be messy. Ik hope the EBU is thankfull too and will remember it. They sure didn’t remember the Netherlands taking on the costs and effort for both the 2020 (wich was cancelled just weeks before) and 2021 show, the latter under covid circumstances requiring an enormous daily covid testing facility and facing a huge drop of ticket revenue due to covid… Read more »

Ari
Ari
4 months ago
Reply to  Jonas

Malmö won’t be available to torture themselves any longer, they said they would reject another offer to host Eurovision. Understandable. Better build that stadium in Göteborg or make sure Taylor Swift isn’t in Stockholm in May 2026. “Too good to go “ interval act already in the works for Martin.

Jonas
Jonas
4 months ago
Reply to  Ari

Swede-haters should really be voting FOR Sweden

Ari
Ari
4 months ago
Reply to  Jonas

Totally! Maybe the juries are all Swede haters.

Ricardo
Ricardo
4 months ago
Reply to  Jonas

You’re mean. I like it. 🙂

Ricardo
Ricardo
4 months ago
Reply to  Ari

Well, I’d offer to sing “And After Goodbye” in his honor, the 1974 Portuguese entry that started a revolution, but my vocal talent is in itself an atrocity. It could cause a riot in the arena.

Lisa
Lisa
4 months ago
Reply to  Jonas

I think we should thank Sweden for hosting the show under these difficult circumstances, with all the demonstrations going on etcera. The EBU put them in this position by allowing Israel to compete. Everybody knew it was going to be messy. Ik hope the EBU is thankfull too and will remember it. They sure didn’t remember the Netherlands taking on the costs and effort for both the 2020 (wich was cancelled just weeks before) and 2021 show, the latter under covid circumstances requiring an enormous daily covid testing facility and facing a huge drop of ticket revenue due to covid… Read more »

Siem
Siem
4 months ago

I would like to thank everyone who supported the Netherlands last week. As a loyal fan of the Eurovision Song Contest, I felt empty last weekend. the great support from different countries has made us stronger and gives me the feeling that a change is happening from within.

David
David
4 months ago
Reply to  Siem

She justifies Joost’s violent behavior but says at the same time that even though Israel is the victim and she was established first, she should have been eliminated from competition. Does that make sense to you? Abnormal woman.

Ari
Ari
4 months ago

Apparently, you forgot to add that Olivera also said she felt for Eden Golan, „a young girl who was being bullied for something thats not her fault”. Didn’t fit your narrative, I know. 😉

Ricardo
Ricardo
4 months ago
Reply to  Ari

That part of the guilt lies with KAN. They were responsible for exposing her to all the Sh*&!tstorm, and she was naive to allow herself to be used as a propaganda tool.

AMAAN STORM
AMAAN STORM
4 months ago
Reply to  Ari

Correct me if im wrong, but nobody forced Eden to represent Israel at the Eurovision, during an ongoing war, in the middle of a political 5h1t5t0rm. She is an adult who decided that she wanted her slice of of the pie. She knew this attention would benefit her in her own home country, where she would be celebrated as a hero for flying their flag, which coincidentally would also further her career. To feel sorry for her is to feel sorry for someone who won the lottery.

Marlinken
Marlinken
4 months ago
Reply to  Ari

She has spent most of the past two weeks repeating the government’s talking points, saying she wants to go into the army after the contest and singing a song that was obviously political. If she wanted to distance herself she had the eyes of the world on her and could have said something like “the world is a complicated place but I hope my song can do a little to bring all people closer together”. Nope, not a word like that, only Netanyahu’s talking points. No sympathy for Eden.

ImStevan
4 months ago

She is deputy of the head of entertainment, but she’s right, she just can’t say it for certain because that would provoke EBU reaction.

Ari
Ari
4 months ago

OMG I finally heard that piece of sh*t song about Österdal. They really had the nerve to put it on Spotify and ofc it got suggested for me. Hetero in a homo world? How insecure and pathetic is it to make sure the world knows he is hetero? Eeew. Good to go indeed. I’m literally discovering new bits of the final show piece by piece and it just gets more absurd.

Ari
Ari
4 months ago
Reply to  Ari

And how many times did they make Malin tell the viewers „the power is in your hands“ when that’s a proven lie? It was her standard phrase every other minute.

Jonas
Jonas
4 months ago
Reply to  Ari

That was just Edward af Sillén mining the gays for more jokes. He does it every time. I don’t blame Martin for that, at least.

Ricardo
Ricardo
4 months ago
Reply to  Ari

Lack of self-awareness, sophisticated trolling or twisted psyops counter-operation. Ladies and gentlemen, please take your pick! This s*&It is surreal.

Sebas
Sebas
4 months ago
Reply to  Ari

It was put on spotify??? Oh no baby no… EBU has no shame lmao. I already found it kinda problematic they kept that interval act in there. Like bruh read the room.

Karl
Karl
4 months ago

BREAKING: A journalist from the New York Times based in Tel Aviv just revealed that the Israeli government hired experts in multiple countries to manipulate the televote for Israel. Check his Twitter @Yonatal_Touval

Jonas
Jonas
4 months ago
Reply to  Karl

Awful. Azerbaijan-like behaviour.

Ari
Ari
4 months ago
Reply to  Jonas

If true. Proof.? All I saw so far was Eden doing ads in every competing country’s language telling to vote for her.

Jonas
Jonas
4 months ago
Reply to  Ari

Awful. Azerbaijan-like behaviour.

If true.

Ricardo
Ricardo
4 months ago
Reply to  Ari

Go ask to the reporter in question. He is Israeli and also works to Haaretz.

PP77
PP77
4 months ago
Reply to  Karl

Same like Azerbaijan 2013, when they buy sms card in many countries and find people to vote for them. Lithuanian journalist wrote about that in 2013.

Ari
Ari
4 months ago
Reply to  Karl

Where’s my money? I should get paid too for my genuine support.

Ricardo
Ricardo
4 months ago
Reply to  Ari

You let yourself be used for free. You’re cheap. 🙂

Ari
Ari
4 months ago
Reply to  Ricardo

You people are so blind with hatred you can’t even take a simple joke. I wasn’t used. I supported my favourite.

Ricardo
Ricardo
4 months ago
Reply to  Ari

Now it’s you that doesn’t understand a joke. I was poking at you.

Johnny
Johnny
4 months ago
Reply to  Karl

And Israel still couldn’t win televote

Ricardo
Ricardo
4 months ago
Reply to  Johnny

Bibi has to ask the experts for his money back.

Alex
Alex
4 months ago
Reply to  Karl

Does he explain how they manage to manipulate Big 5 and western televotes to get all 12 points but not Eastern televotings?
Germany and UK have the toughest and largest televotings. Not easy at all

Ricardo
Ricardo
4 months ago
Reply to  Alex

Carpet bombing Europe with a sh!?*load of ads and some coordination with the “silent majority”.

Ricardo
Ricardo
4 months ago
Reply to  Alex

It would be interesting to access the detailed data about the number of phone calls in each country. Does anyone know if that is available somewhere?

Lisa
Lisa
4 months ago
Reply to  Karl

If this were true and evidence based, why would he put it out on twitter, instead of in the New York Times? I think Israel has enough support throughout Europe (Jewish people but also right wing voters that are no fan of everything muslim) to get a big televote result without manipulation. In the Netherlands, there even was a right wing politician that asked people on twitter to vote for Israel. And I know of people who normally don’t watch Eurovision because they say it is a freak show, but now tuned in especially to vote for Israel. This all… Read more »

Jonas
Jonas
4 months ago

If Joost had done this to a complete outsider, in a Malmö supermarket or back at his hotel, he probably would gave been allowed stay. Unfortunately, the incident happened at a workplace environment which changes things. Imagine this happening in your own life. What was the victim to do the next day? Turn up for work and see him again? Call in sick? Using rehearsal footage was the beat way out, I can’t see why the EBU didn’t go for this option. Which makes me wonder if it was in fact OFFERED to AvroTros, but Joost turned it down. All… Read more »

Jonas
Jonas
4 months ago
Reply to  Jonas

would have been allowed

Jonas
Jonas
4 months ago
Reply to  Jonas

Using rehearsal footage was the best way out

Eyal
Eyal
4 months ago
Reply to  Jonas

But then the Dutch delegation would still be present in the green room.

Jonas
Jonas
4 months ago
Reply to  Eyal

The whole delegation is not responsible for the actions of one man.

Ari
Ari
4 months ago
Reply to  Jonas

I would have an opinion on this if I really knew the story. It seems like the EBU wants to sit even this one out until nobody remembers or cares anymore. Leaving this up in the air is really quite heinous. But Sand did the same every time Azerbaijan broke the rules. It’s what EBU does, before and after Österdahl.

Jonas
Jonas
4 months ago
Reply to  Ari

People should watch the BBC Panorama programme from 2012. “Eurovision’s Dirty Secret” is on YouTube. Not connected to this, but we really shouldn’t be surprised at how they operate.

Davie
Davie
4 months ago

What exactly is Wiwibloggs trying to do? in all previous years, they have significantly reduced the amount of content in the days following the final and then focussed on how well the various songs have charted in different countries. this year, no articles about how well Nemo and Baby Lasagna are performing in the charts and Spotify rankings across Europe (very well by the way, thanks for asking). instead there is just article after article stirring up trouble for the organisers. It wasn’t the best contest in history, I think we can all agree on that but no number of… Read more »

NickC
NickC
4 months ago
Reply to  Davie

Because the number of complaints from participant countries is unprecedented. Any decent journalist would focus on that. Without criticism there is no progress.

Thanos
Thanos
4 months ago
Reply to  Davie

Many broadcasters/artists are continuing to state the obvious disgraces that occured this year. Of course these should be reported. And we as fans should continue putting pressure in the direction of change

Eyal
Eyal
4 months ago
Reply to  Davie

Fans like soap operas… Give That Wolf A Banana.

Ifty
Ifty
4 months ago
Reply to  Davie

They’ve decided to lean into the toxicity rather than act as fans.

Jonas
Jonas
4 months ago
Reply to  Ifty

Ridiculous. Like saying any American journalist that covers the Trump trial is not a patriot.

Lisa
Lisa
4 months ago
Reply to  Davie

Wiwibloggs is reporting on an important news story about Eurovision. That is their purpose isn’t it? Reporting on everything concering Eurovision? They did report on the rankings of Eurovision songs in different charts by the way. I say a wiwi message about that on twitter yesterday.

Nicolas
Nicolas
4 months ago

Let’s wait the police report then we can judge if it was disproportionate or not

Seddik
Seddik
4 months ago
Reply to  Nicolas

We know enough. According to Emil Andersson, in charge of the Malmö police investigation, there was no serious crime committed (also the reason the criminal case can be fast-tracked) as there was no physical violence against a person and no verbal threat. Only a threatening movement ( a lunge towards the camera) was made.

He >probably< miscalculated his reach and knocked it out of the camera woman's hand.

Green
Green
4 months ago

Im praying for a mass withdrawal next year.

Sh1ft_key
Sh1ft_key
4 months ago
Reply to  Green

As a Swiss, I agree! I’ll consider boycotting if Israel is again allowed to participate anyway. The war on Palestinians most likely won’t be over then.

Darren
Darren
4 months ago
Reply to  Sh1ft_key

It’s already been going on for decades though.
On and off of course, but the tension is ever present

Otto
Otto
4 months ago

The Dutch broadcaster just revealed that they’ve put in 2 official complaints about an unsafe environment behind the scene. This was before the incident with Joost. So probably the EBU was already not happy with NL.
Possible more broadcasters have put in complaints so it looks like this season is far from over 😉

Marlinken
Marlinken
4 months ago
Reply to  Otto

RTE, RTP, RTVE, NRK and, apparently, the BBC, all have open complaints with them at the moment. If Spain or the UK walk, the EBU will have questions about their survival.

Eyal
Eyal
4 months ago
Reply to  Marlinken

They don’t want a divorce, just a fight, an apology, and a settlement. The complaints are in order to improve, not to threaten.

NoMoreEscAddicted
NoMoreEscAddicted
4 months ago

Without knowing what he has really done or not it’s hard to judge, but instead of deprived of contest an entire team and an entire country they could have used his semi final performance in the Grand Final, I don’t get it…

Seddik
Seddik
4 months ago

I think they wanted to further punish the Dutch delegation for their defiance.

I don’t know at what point the organization will get access to the jury scores, but the Netherlands was already mathematically eliminated for victory based on the jury results. So they could easily have shown the performance of the semi-final without any weird consequences if the Netherlands would’ve won.

Noel
Noel
4 months ago

The Netherlands got what he deserved after what he just did on Israel

funkerman24
funkerman24
4 months ago
Reply to  Noel

cute

Otto
Otto
4 months ago
Reply to  Noel

Wow..you are a sad person

Ricardo
Ricardo
4 months ago
Reply to  Noel

You are a sad and mean person.

MaggieMayhem
MaggieMayhem
4 months ago
Reply to  Noel

What did he do?

Maria
Maria
4 months ago
Reply to  MaggieMayhem

He asked why she didn’t want to answer a question

salomon the sardine
salomon the sardine
4 months ago
Reply to  Noel

Karma is a bi@tch 🙂

Lisa
Lisa
4 months ago
Reply to  Noel

What did he do exactly? He asked the Polish reporter “In what way” and then asked the conference leader “Why not” about not having to anwer the reporter’s question. How is that such a bad thing? He didn’t say anything bad about Israel, did he? And about the flag over his head, he was doing that on and off during the entire conference, not just when Israel was interviewed. Yes, that is a weird thing to do, but he wears a flag over his head all the time, has done that numerous times during previous concerts and shows he did.… Read more »

Ricardo
Ricardo
4 months ago
Reply to  Lisa

The thing with the flag is probably related do the fact that Joost is on the spectrum. Probably a way to deal with overstimulation. I’m not an expert, but it seems plausible.

Marlinken
Marlinken
4 months ago

What is going on in Serbia?! Apart from Sweden, the Serbian jury gave *that* homoerotic UK performance more points than any other country and now the state-funded national broadcaster is defending the Netherlands? I’m confused; happy to see it, but confused!

Karl
Karl
4 months ago

Ban the gen.o.cidal entity israel!!!

Leo M
Leo M
4 months ago

The only way this can be solved is if Martin and his friends resign. Too many delegations are pissed off and could have mass withdrawals if something drastic doesn’t change.

Johnny
Johnny
4 months ago

Im so disappointed with this season. Everything could have been avoided:( Europeans have been denied to enjoy this event. I can’t apologize for someone bcs i am not religious person, but my parents are jewish and they raised me not to hate anyone. And my boyfriend is also not religious arab guy. I really don’t care for that, only for decent human beings. We are not all the same , the most important thing is to remain human. On all sides. Peace and love. And long live Europe

Jonas
Jonas
4 months ago
Reply to  Johnny

We are are all born as a human beings

Jak
Jak
4 months ago
Reply to  Jonas

Does this makes us all divas?

sparkling points
sparkling points
4 months ago

Now all those who put the blame on the innocent in this matter, namely Israel, can step forward and present their excuses.

And in the meantime, Isr a el is celebrating their 76th Independence Day.

*Yom Ha’atzmaut Sameach!!!!*

NickC
NickC
4 months ago

Killing thousands of children is not innocence.

sparkling points
sparkling points
4 months ago
Reply to  NickC

Those who displaced, forced to convert or decimated entire Jewish groups throughout millennia are not innocent.

The atrocities of ww2 happened, Isr ael was created and a new international system was put in place together with laws and protocols and conventions and whatnot. It looks that they apply punctually to other countries or people or issues *except* for Isra el and the Jewish people.

Ricardo
Ricardo
4 months ago

One more reason. The Jewish people have suffered a number of atrocities over time and have been victims of g3noc1de, so they have an added responsibility to ensure that no more are committed in their name.

Lisa
Lisa
4 months ago
Reply to  Ricardo

Don’t agree with that. Anybody has the responsibility to not commit atrocities, no matter what happened or didn’t happen to them in the past.

NickC
NickC
4 months ago

Two wrongs do not make one right.

Lisa
Lisa
4 months ago

You are right, those are not innocent either. But it wasn’t the Palestinians that were responsible for the hollocaust. It was the Europeans. I for one believe that you should have gotten a piece of European territory to found your state, not a piece of territory elsewhere were people that had nothing to do with the whole thing were living and had to flee.

salomon the sardine
salomon the sardine
4 months ago
Reply to  NickC

This morning the UN said their nubers are wrong.
Half of those number reported by H@m@s-I!s!s was false.

Ricardo
Ricardo
4 months ago

And… It’s still a huge pile of corpses. Are you really trying to appease your conscience?

jojo
jojo
4 months ago

No, the UN said the numbers were correct but that Palestinians could only identify 13,000 by name because the others were in pieces, body parts, and unable to be identified because their bodies and faces are too destroyed. There’s also thousands buried under the ruble.

MaggieMayhem
MaggieMayhem
4 months ago

Innocent? MANY delegations have now submitted official complaints with the EBU regarding the Israeli delegation breaking contest rules. EBU has already admitted that Bambie’s specific complaint about the KAN commentator is a breach of contest rules.

Ifty
Ifty
4 months ago

For a second there I thought that instead of doing the toxic thing that you’d report on the new information that he apparently was violent and that there was a broken camera involved, or that you’d at lest stop tying this to the Dov Gilhar video when all parties involved affirmed that it has nothing to do with this.

But I guess that the masks are off.

MaggieMayhem
MaggieMayhem
4 months ago
Reply to  Ifty

That story was published by a Swedish gossip tabloid. They only credited 1 source, and in journalism 1 source does not make a story creditable.

Ifty
Ifty
4 months ago
Reply to  MaggieMayhem

I like that when you get reports that say that he was wronged then it merits reporting but if the reports are saying that he might have been in the wrong than the reporting has to be false and shouldn’t be reported.

Seddik
Seddik
4 months ago
Reply to  Ifty

Source: a Swedish tabloid that also claimed that Joost Klein hit someone, which was denied by Swedish police the very same day.

salomon the sardine
salomon the sardine
4 months ago
Reply to  Ifty

BBC/WIWI propaganda
Justice for Joost – while the real victim is the Swed worker

Maria
Maria
4 months ago

Israeli but working/living in Sweden

Lisa
Lisa
4 months ago
Reply to  Maria

That is never mentioned in any official information about this case. The nationality of the victim is unknown to us at this point.

Mandy
Mandy
4 months ago

I miss the video of Joost being bullied by the Israëlian songwriter and dancer. Artists also have a breakingpoint. Only human. The protests outside also added a lot of tension. The show must go on? Sure, but there has to be a safe foundation to land on for the artist.

Alex
Alex
4 months ago

EBU: “United By Music”

its members: United against EBU

ANDREW BROWN
ANDREW BROWN
4 months ago

I just wish someone would confirm what he allegedly actually did!

Ifty
Ifty
4 months ago
Reply to  ANDREW BROWN

There are reports that according to the accusations he raised his fiests and acted aggressively according to multiple witnesses accounts and that the incident resulted in a broken camera and that the Dutch delegation denied the accusation.

But this won’t feed well into the angry mod of toxic “fans”, unlike trying to tie the incident again to Israel, which all parties involved denied. So wiwibloggs isn’t going to report on that. And they will keep mentioning the Dov Gilhar video every time they are “reporting” on this.

Sh1ft_key
Sh1ft_key
4 months ago
Reply to  Ifty

The reason for the distressed atmosphere was Israel’s participation and the behaviour of its delegation. So yes, the incident can be linked to them.

Mandy
Mandy
4 months ago
Reply to  Sh1ft_key

I agree. The bullying videos are so horrible to watch.

Lisa
Lisa
4 months ago
Reply to  Sh1ft_key

I actually don’t agree. Dutch members of the press that were present in Malmö have stated on Dutch TV that they witnessed Joost getting more and more agitaded about the social media obligations that he had to go through as a candidate, such as appear in EBU made obligatory tiktok reels that he didn’t agree with content wise, and constantly being surrounded by content media creators filming him back stage. And that he also had trouble with the strict set of rules and the mandatory schedule that he had to follow. The press members think that he felt that he… Read more »

Ricardo
Ricardo
4 months ago
Reply to  Ifty

Dov Gilhar is a s*&%t stirrer and a vile creature.

Mandy
Mandy
4 months ago
Reply to  Ifty

The Keren Peles Video bullying Joost with her dancer is just as bad as the Dov Gilhar video. Both of them proudly uploaded the videos of their bullying behavior themselves. Why?

Lisa
Lisa
4 months ago
Reply to  Ifty

The only thing we know for sure, if you only trust official statements, is that what he did can be perceived as threatening, that it was a movement, and that he did not touch the victim. Everything else is not officially verified (this Swedish newpaper Aftonbladet is comparable to the Sun in the UK, so not entirely trustworthy). The Dutch delegation did not deny the accusation. They just said it was not worth getting disqualified over.

Elizabeth
Elizabeth
4 months ago
Reply to  ANDREW BROWN

My understanding is that he asked the producers to keep cameras off him backstage after the performance. The song is humorous but has a lot of emotions behind it and he didnt want footage of the moments immediately after. Which is a completely fair request. The camera person in question evidentally did not get the memo and he asked her to put the camera away. She did not, and details of what exactly happened after that are unclear. He does not appear to have physically touched her, but made some kind of agressive gesture. It was an incident that should… Read more »

Mandy
Mandy
4 months ago
Reply to  Elizabeth

This was the build-up as far as we know, and he immediately apologized, according to his team. She did not want to talk to him or his delegation to de-escalate or come to a mutual understanding and solution. She immediately escalated to an official complaint. This is what we know in the Netherlands so far. Now waiting for his own story and the outcome of the investigation. Sometimes you just have to talk together to solve an issue, everyone was under so much pressure.

Camellia
Camellia
4 months ago

I just want to say one thing that took my attention today. The official Eurovision Instagram account uploaded pictures from all the artist on the Turquoise carpet EXCEPT FOR JOOST! You say you stand for “unity” yet you exclude him from everywhere as if he murdered someone? The more things I see, the more and more angry I become at the EBU, that deserves to be destroyed

Lisa
Lisa
4 months ago
Reply to  Camellia

That is what hurt me as a Dutch person, watching the grand final. They didn’t even mention he was disqualified or simply that he would not be performing. They just completely erased him, like he was never there.

Voix
Voix
4 months ago

I wonder the reason why accreditations were taken from people for minor mistakes but for people harassing others and filming without their consent, nothing was done apart from a change of a dressing room. Some double standards sponsored by Moroccanoil? Allegedly.

Nicolas
Nicolas
4 months ago

OK let’s abandoned rules. Anarchy in the EBU.

Ricardo
Ricardo
4 months ago
Reply to  Nicolas

It’s already installed. One day you’ll probably witness riots in the arena.

Alex
Alex
4 months ago

So what Besa is saying is that ECHR article 6 (2) explicitly states that an individual is innocent until proven guilty. (3) is basically a list of minimum rights the accused person can do to defend their stance (eg examine witness claims).

Gianni
Gianni
4 months ago

Israel needs to be disqualified retrospectively for misconduct. Remove that “country” from the final tally.

Seddik
Seddik
4 months ago

Lol Besa casually referring to rights enshrined in the ECHR discussing Eurovision on Twitter 😀 What a queen.

salomon the sardine
salomon the sardine
4 months ago

And I would say that stoping the eurovision broadcast because of China visit in your counry (serbia) is a good reason for disqualification as well.

Alex
Alex
4 months ago

They said in advance that the broadcast would be switched to RTS 2.

Vladimir P.
Vladimir P.
4 months ago

I don’t agree with the RTS decision to move the ESC broadcast to from RTS 1 to RTS 2 for 10 minutes, but you seem to be very DQ-happy.

Ricardo
Ricardo
4 months ago

The most shocking thing is the double standards in the way the reported situations were handled. Total lack of principles and courage on the part of EBU. Revolting!

Marcel
Marcel
4 months ago

We don’t know what exactly happened, but it seems clear that leading up to this “incident”, Joost was clearly anxious about being filmed right after his performance and he shared his wish not to be filmed with the camera woman and the EBU. As much as the EBU tries to create a safe space for their workers, they did nothing to create a safe place for the artists. So much is clear out of many more stories from other artists as well. Filming people that tell you not to do so is not okay. But apparently TikTok deals are more… Read more »

NickC
NickC
4 months ago

The more I read, the more I agree about Bambie about.. xxxx EBU.

Mr T.
Mr T.
4 months ago

As a fan, it’s super disappointing to see a fan favorite being disqualified. Currently, the EBU has not provided sufficient explanation or clarity on the matter to understand, support, or accept this decision. Transparency is key to make people understand. I truly hope the EBU becomes more transparant in the future. Why, for example, is there no press conference with the EBU during the event?

Sebas
Sebas
4 months ago

As the EBU would put it: “A female head of entertainment is defending a man. She must hate women.”

Anyway good on her! We gotta speak out more on the EBU completely missing the mark this year on multiple fronts.

Alex
Alex
4 months ago

Big respect for all the delegations and artists that are speaking up. Especially to Besa on how articulate was she about the Joost’s situation. I hope more countries will follow in order for EBU to be held accountable.

Anonymous91
Anonymous91
4 months ago

lovely to see the support from Serbia, and also from Albania’s Besa <3