CAMPAIGNERS have protested at RTÉ's headquarters calling for the state broadcaster to boycott Eurovision.
This year's Eurovision Song Contest is to be held in Israel and campaigners say the state's record on alleged human rights abuses makes taking part in the competition "unconscionable".
Protesters handed in a petition of more than 16,500 signatures to the studios on Friday, calling on RTÉ and Ireland's Eurovision entry Sarah McTernan not to take part in the singing contest.
Around 50 people carrying Palestinian flags, banners and placards gathered at the station's Dublin HQ and built a fake stone wall to mimic the Israel/Gaza security barrier.
Zoe Lawlor, a spokeswoman for the campaign, said the idea that Eurovision is non-political is false.
"Israel has made this year's Eurovision explicitly militaristic and political in nature," she said.
"This is especially so as the contestants will be expected to perform in front of 500 soldiers from the Israeli military.
"The boycott call has been supported by over 16,500 people in Ireland, the Musicians Union of Ireland, Irish Equity and many prominent figures associated with former Eurovisions, as well as respected public figures in the arts, humanities and human and civil rights fields.
"Ireland has a proud tradition of standing with the oppressed and against injustice and we sincerely hope that Sarah McTernan will take this opportunity to stand on the right side of history by listening to the Palestinian and international calls for a boycott."
Fatin al Tamimi, a Palestinian woman who has lived in Ireland for 30 years, and chairwoman of the Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign, says a boycott by Ireland would send a strong message of solidarity.
"Palestine is watching and waiting and looking for Ireland to support them, there has been a civil call in society in Palestine to boycott Eurovision," she said.
"We don't want Ireland to take part in the whitewashing of Israel, which is an apartheid state.
"Their postcard campaign during the programme will show illegal settlements in the occupied territories as part of Israel."
Dee Forbes, director general of RTÉ, said last year that the company would not sanction any workers whose consciences prevent them from travelling to Israel.
As a member of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), RTÉ has registered to take part in the 2019 contest.
In September, the broadcaster stated that: "RTÉ is not aware of any regularly participating public service broadcaster who is planning to boycott the Eurovision Song Contest."
The head of the Irish Eurovision delegation, RTÉ’s Michael Kealey, said RTÉ respects anyone’s right to protest.
But he said RTÉ is a public service broadcaster and did not take a political stance. He said RTÉ’s colleagues throughout the European Broadcasting Union, such as the BBC and French TV, are participating in Eurovision this year, adding the contest is about music and is not political.
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