As the winner of the song festival, Switzerland will be allowed to host the Eurovision Song Contest next year. Several cities have already registered for the world’s largest music competition. But there is increasing resistance to the show. Several parties are even calling for referendums.
In this, all loans for the implementation of the ESC must be put to the vote of the people. Zurich, Geneva, Basel and Bern/Biel are candidates for the event. The party criticizes that the estimated costs of more than 40 million francs (around 41.2 million euros) would be financed largely from tax money.
Criticism of the direction in which ESC is “developing”
The singing competition has the potential to become a joyful popular festival, but has developed “in a different direction” in recent years, according to the EDU. The number of anti-Semitic incidents has increased recently. The demonstrations against Israeli singer Eden Golan also raised fears that keeping the ESC in Switzerland could pose a significant security risk. There are also increasing numbers of performances celebrating Satanism and the occult. One at least visual example of this was this year’s performance by singer Bambie Thugs from Ireland.
In Zurich, where the city parliament approved a loan of 20 million euros last week, the taxpayers’ association also wants to defend itself against the ESC. The organization affiliated with the SVP wants to make an official decision on the referendum on Wednesday evening. There are also referendum threats in Bern.
At the cantonal level, the SVP and the EDU are threatening a referendum against the loan of almost 30 million euros that the cantonal government has presented. The money is mainly intended to cover security costs.
There is no uprising in these cities
So far, there has been no noticeable resistance in Basel-Stadt to the possible organisation of the Eurovision Song Contest. On the contrary: at the beginning of June, the Grand Council had already adopted a resolution of the GLP for a request with 74 votes in favour, 8 and 6 abstentions. Most members of the SVP faction also chose the pro-side. In Geneva, too, there has been no resistance so far.
Source: Krone
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