EUROVISION'S 30 MOST CONTROVERSIAL MOMENTS. 
Part 27: 2016 ("1944").
Continues tomorrow.

THE BIGGEST CONTROVERSIES

Of the

EUROVISION SONG CONTEST

(1956 - 2019)  

From its inaugural year, the Eurovision Song Contest has had more than its fair share of controversial moments. This is a special look back on 30 significant upsets in chronological order.

2016

“1944 Rules”.

“1944”, the winning song in 2016, it has been argued, may have been in breach of the rules of the Eurovision Song Contest. The ESC has applied strict rules to avoid it being used as a platform for political causes. These were famously invoked in 2009 with Georgia’s “We Don’t Want To Put In” and just one year prior when Armenia’s entry made references to the Armenian genocide.

The 2009 winning song somehow was approved, despite containing references to the deportation of the Crimean Tatars by the Soviet Union in 1944. The overall mood and lyrics are very gloomy and violent. Performed by Jamala, whose great-grandmother was herself deported, the message of “1944” sadly still resonates as reflected in the tensions between the Ukraine and Russia today.

The European Broadcasting Union put this issue aside. After the Ukraine was declared a winner, reports emerged that the song had been performed prior to the date that deems a song is new. The 1999 Bosnian entry had to be substituted for the same reason. In 2011, Belarus had to replace its entry because it had been performed the summer before.

Jamala had performed an early version of her song on May 18, 2015. This is months before the September 1 date after which the next entry may be performed. The EBU maintained that “1944” was eligible and as a result, the song remains the official winner.

Recent exceptions include a contender in the Danish national selections entitled “Never Alone” and the Dutch entry “Birds”. Both had been performed prior to the September 1 cut off date.  

It is worth noting that, the Ukrainian entry failed to win either the jury or televoting. The various juries sent the most points to Australia’s “Sound Of Silence” by Dami Im. The TV viewing audience gave the most votes to Russia’s “You Are The Only One” after a technologically spectacular performance by Sergey Lazarev. Despite this, Jamala was declared the winner.