LONDON: Several bands withdrew from a British festival on Saturday following claims that Irish folk group The Mary Wallopers had their set cut short for displaying a Palestinian flag.
The incident sparked a wave of boycotts from other performers in solidarity, it was reported on Sunday.
The Last Dinner Party, Cliffords, and The Academic announced that they would no longer perform at the annual Victorious Festival in Portsmouth, citing concerns over political censorship.
Rock band The Last Dinner Party described the incident as “outrageous” and said they could not condone silencing artists.
“As Gazans are deliberately plunged into catastrophic famine after two years of escalating violence, it is urgent and obvious that artists use their platform to draw attention to the cause,” the band said in a statement shared on Instagram.
They urged fans to support Palestinian medical charities and apologized to those hoping to see them perform.
The Mary Wallopers claimed the festival released a “misleading statement” by suggesting their set was cut due to a discriminatory chant, rather than the band’s call to “Free Palestine.”
They released video footage showing a crew member removing the flag from the stage before the sound was cut.
“The same crew member is later heard saying ‘You aren’t playing until the flag is removed’,” the band added.
The Academic said they could not “in good conscience” perform at a festival that silenced free speech, while Cliffords said they “refuse to play if we are to be censored for showing our support to the people of Palestine.”
Festival organizers initially said The Mary Wallopers’ microphones were turned off after displaying the flag, citing a long-standing policy against flags for safety and event management reasons.
They said: “We spoke to the artist before the performance regarding the festival’s long-standing policy of not allowing flags of any kind at the event, but (we said) that we respect their right to express their views during the show.”
They acknowledged, however, that the policy was not communicated sensitively and apologized for the way the situation was handled.
They added: “The Mary Wallopers are a fantastic band, and we were very much looking forward to their performance on Friday.
“We are in the business of putting on great shows, not cutting them off, and this is the last thing we wanted — for the band, their fans and ourselves.”
Organizers also pledged to make a “substantial donation” to humanitarian relief efforts for Palestinians.
The festival’s closing day on Sunday was set to feature Kings of Leon, with Bloc Party, Gabrielle, and The Reytons among the other acts scheduled to perform.
