The Flow Strike campaign has signed an agreement with the big Helsinki festival, which promised to use BDS guidelines when making future sponsorship deals.
Flow Festival has reached an agreement with the Flow Strike campaign, which in recent years has encouraged artists and audiences to boycott the annual Helsinki event over its tenuous ties to Israel.
The deal was disclosed to Yle by the festival’s new CEO, Katariina Uusitupa, and Flow Strike spokesperson Jenna Jauhiainen.
Flow Strike says it will drop its calls for a boycott of the event.
In the past, campaigners demanded that Flow sever all ties to Israel. The festival’s owner, Superstruct Entertainment, is in turn owned by investment firm KKR, which has previously invested in Israel. In addition, Flow’s sponsors include companies operating in Israel.
No changes to ownership or corporate partners
Uusitupa says there will be no changes to Flow’s ownership structure or existing sponsorship agreements. Among Flow partners, at least Google and Heineken have investments in Israel.
However, Flow pledges to be clearer about how it selects future partners, and commits to taking into account a list of boycott targets drawn up by the international BDS (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions) movement. The list includes companies that the BDS movement believes play a role in Israel’s war crimes and human rights violations.
The BDS movement opposes Israel’s actions in the Palestinian territories through a various of financial means.
According to Uusitupa, Flow has in the past used the BDS list when making agreements.
“Let’s say that the written version of our process is in better shape than before,” she says.
“We’ve been on the same page from the beginning”
In previous years Flow has not had a public dialogue with Flow Strike. However, Uusitupa denies that the campaign brought any pressure on the festival or caused it any reputational damage or financial losses.
“From the beginning, we have unequivocally condemned the genocide and war crimes committed by Israel in the Gaza Strip. We’ve been on the same page (with Flow Strike) from the beginning,” Uusitupa says.
According to Jauhiainen, there was no communication between Flow Strike and the festival over the last two years. According to her, reaching an agreement was possible because Flow’s new CEO was willing to negotiate.
Uusitupa succeeds former CEO and co-founder Suvi Kallio, who is now a senior advisor and board member.
Last year, Flow attracted a record 92,000 people to Helsinki’s Suvilahti area over three days in mid-August.
Edit: This article’s headline was changed on 18 June at 19.43.
