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Belgium’s public broadcaster for the Flemish region, VRT, will air a campaign film by Oxfam’s Belgium Directorate titled "Raise Your Voice for Palestine" several times during the week of the Eurovision Song Contest in Basel, Switzerland.
The campaign, aiming to raise awareness of the suffering and attacks faced by the Palestinian people, will be shown three times before the first semi-final, which begins at 10:00 p.m. (Istanbul time), and will continue to be broadcast daily until the final on May 17.
The campaign film is a joint initiative by Oxfam Belgium and ACOD, the union representing VRT employees. In a written statement, the organizations declared, "The suffering of the Palestinian people and Israel's controversial participation in the Eurovision Song Contest in Basel have stirred emotions.
ACOD-VRT and Oxfam Belgium have joined forces to ensure that the Palestinian voice is heard at a time when Israel is allowed to wave its flag on the world stage without shame."
ACOD representative Wies Descheemaeker emphasized, "Silence is not an option, and as a union, we do everything in our power to make our voices heard."
Eva Smets, Director of Oxfam Belgium, stated, "Given the latest developments in Gaza and the West Bank, Israel's ongoing occupation, and military violence, this campaign is more critical than ever. We object to Israel’s participation in the Eurovision Song Contest as if there were no problems."
Oxfam’s "Raise Your Voice for Palestine" campaign calls for a permanent cease-fire, humanitarian aid for Palestinian civilians, and economic sanctions against Israel. The campaign has so far collected over 67,000 signatures.
The campaign film features more than 100 Belgian artists and public figures, who express their opposition to Israel's actions in Gaza and call on the Belgian government to take action.
Last year, VRT also protested Israel's participation by interrupting the Eurovision final broadcast to share a message condemning Israel's human rights and press freedom violations and calling for a ceasefire.
Israel is set to compete in the Eurovision Song Contest 2025 in Basel, Switzerland, from May 13 to 17, with its representative Yuval Raphael performing "New Day Will Rise" in the second semi-final on May 15.
Despite banning Russia from the contest since 2022 due to the ongoing war in Ukraine, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which organizes Eurovision, has faced criticism for not taking similar action against Israel.
The organization has been accused of "hypocrisy" and "double standards."
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