There is a growing trend among international artists to cancel scheduled performances in Israel, due to pressure by pro-Palestinian groups demanding they speak out against Israel’s occupation and treatment of the Palestinians. Singer Elvis Costello who initially spoke out against such protests, announced plans to withdraw from two scheduled performances in Tel Aviv. Costello is not the only artist to back out, Demis Roussos and Carlos Santana also cancelled performances in Israel. Music and Sport should be kept out of the political arena for all to enjoy.
Elvis Costello, the British singer married to American jazz singer Diana Krall, has decided to join an ever growing list of artists who are boycotting Israel, and announced the cancellation of two concerts in Tel Aviv in protest of its treatment of Palestinians.
Other artists who also refuse to perform in Israel include Greek singer Demis Roussos who was to have performed this month in Tel Aviv, Carlos Santana and Gil Scott Heron. Other international artists who have declined to play in Israel include Sting, Bono, Snoop Dogg .
Pro-Palestinian groups abroad are seeking to convince Joan Armatrading and Bob Dylan to cancel their planned concerts and various groups have sprung up on Facebook in an effort to convince the artists to refrain from playing in Israel.
On his Web site, Costello who initially said he would not support such a boycott, announced that he has changed his mind. In a statement, entitled 'It is After Considerable Contemplation', Costello said it was "a matter of instinct and conscience... and regret" which had led him to cancel his Israel dates.
"There are occasions when merely having your name added to a concert schedule may be interpreted as a political act that resonates more than anything that might be sung and it may be assumed that one has no mind for the suffering of the innocent." The bespectacled singer and guitarist wrote, “I must believe that the audience for the coming concerts would have contained many people who question the policies of their government on settlement and deplore conditions that visit intimidation, humiliation or much worse on Palestinian civilians in the name of national security."
His decision was welcomed by the Palestinian Solidarity Campaign who compared the boycott against Israel to that waged against South Africa in apartheid times.
Among the patrons of the PSC are famed British actress Julie Christie, author William Dalrymple, Israeli scholar Ilan Pappe, and Dr Ghada Karmi – the Vice-Chair of the Council for Arab-British Understanding.
It is a sad day for world democracy when music becomes embroiled in politics. |
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