DUBAI: Irish pop singer Ciara Mary-Alice Thompson, who goes by the artist name CMAT, this week withdrew from the UK’s Latitude Festival in protest against the event’s sponsorship by Barclays Bank.
Campaigners allege that Barclays has increased its investments in arms companies that trade with Israel.
Her decision follows the withdrawal of over 100 artists from The Great Escape festival in Brighton in May, in protest over the bank’s involvement with that festival.
Bands Boycott Barclays (BBB), the organization spearheading the campaign, asserted that the bank was engaged in “laundering its reputation” through its association with music festivals, a claim that Barclays refutes.
In her statement, Thompson said that she had asked that Latitude find a different sponsor, but it was “made clear” to her that this would not happen.
