(Malmö) Nemo won Eurovision for Switzerland on Sunday with “The Code”, becoming the first non-binary artist to be crowned in the competition, at the end of a 2024 edition marked by heated controversy over the participation of Israel, in the midst of war in the Gaza Strip.
“I hope this competition can continue to encourage (efforts for) peace and dignity for everyone,” said the 24-year-old artist as he received his trophy at the Malmö Arena in southern Sweden. eyes clouded with tears.
With her pink and red feathered jacket and pink satin skirt, Nemo collected 591 points, surpassing Croatian favorite Baby Lasagna with 547 points. Ukraine finished third (453 points) and France fourth (445 points).
Israeli Eden Golan, whistled several times by opponents of the war in Gaza, came in fifth place with 323 points for her song “Hurricane”.
PHOTO TOBIAS SCHWARZ, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Swiss singer Nemo
“It’s clearly political,” lamented a fan of the singer, Guy, in Tel Aviv, who had gone with friends to a gay bar in the city to watch the final. “There are people who hate us. They don’t see the bigger picture,” he added.
Nemo said he was “saddened” by the tense context in which the famous telecrochet took place this year, which was supervised by an important security system in the fear of excesses.
“This whole experience was very intense and not always pleasant. There were a lot of things that didn’t seem to be about love and unity,” the artist confided during a press conference after the competition.
“Neither a man nor a woman”
Nemo gives Switzerland, champion of neutrality, its third crown in a competition that aims to be apolitical. The country’s previous victory dates back to 1988 with “Ne partez pas sans moi” performed by Canadian Céline Dion.
“Nemo, you are the best,” burst out the town of Bienne, in the north-west of Switzerland, where several hundred fans had gathered to celebrate the child of the country.
His song, “The Code,” “is about the journey I began by realizing that I am neither a man nor a woman,” said Nemo, who asks to be referred to by gender-neutral pronouns and had flown the flag non-binary during the opening parade of the competition.
The European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which oversees the competition, prohibits any flag other than those of the participating countries, and in particular any banner with a political message.
“I was forced to sneak my flag,” lamented Nemo, who felt that “Eurovision needs to change a little” in the way it operates.
The competition, followed by tens of millions of viewers around the world, regularly appears as a showcase for the LGBTQ+ community. The Austrian bearded drag queen Conchita Wurst, winner in 2014, or the French candidate Bilal Hassani in 2019, have entered his annals.
Dispersed protesters
In Zagreb, several hundred people watched the show on a big screen. Even though he saw victory elude him, Baby Lasagna “brought together all of Croatia. We can be proud of him,” noted a fan, Nina Plese, 34 years old.
In Malmö, the police dispersed around a hundred pro-Palestinian demonstrators on Saturday, including Greta Thunberg, better known for her positions on the climate, but who has recently increased her messages on the issue.
Some 5,000 people, according to the police, also marched peacefully to protest against Israel’s participation.
The unions of the Flemish public television channel VRT briefly interrupted the broadcast on Saturday evening to broadcast a message condemning “violations of human rights by the State of Israel”, as they had done on Thursday during the second semi-final.
The war waged by Israel in Gaza against Hamas has left at least 34,971 dead, mainly civilians, according to a report from the Islamist organization’s Ministry of Health.
It was triggered by the attack carried out on October 7 by Hamas which left more than 1,170 dead in Israeli territory, most of them civilians, according to an AFP report based on official Israeli data.