It took place in Slovakia on Thursday, April 16 The 30th annual collection of the League Against Cancer called Daffodil Day. Opposition party Progressive Slovakia (PS) decided to support the collection in an unconventional way. Its members published photos with the faces of politicians from opposite camps stuck to yellow flowers.
The president is in the pictures that are spreading on social networks Peter Pellegrini, Minister Tomáš Taraba, Minister Richard Takáč, Igor Matovič, Minister Matúš Šutaj Eštok and other politicianswho apparently the PS considers “narcissists”. “Support daffodils, but not these,” it is stated in the campaign. She commented critically on this step singer Katka Koščováwho did not hide her disappointment in her opinion. “Why like this? Why? We really have nothing more to do?” she asked by way of introduction.
It is not identified with the whole campaign at all. “I’m really disillusioned with this Daffodil Day campaign because I find it really insensitive and I would expect that the largest opposition party, in which I, for example, place my hopes in the next elections, will also communicate various topics on social networks in such a more humane and kind way,” she said in an Instagram video on Thursday. You can find it at the beginning of the article.
She believes that political satire in such a sensitive context should give way to feedback from those most affected by the collection. “If I saw that oncology patients were commenting on it, that it really affected them and that it didn’t feel right to them, I would take it down. Pretending it’s just humor, even humor has its limits. It’s about who owns it to be kind of funny in that way,” she pointed out in the context of the chosen PS strategy.
The artist pointed to the fact that the public perceives humor differently if it comes from a political environment. “If it gave von Zomri (satirical page, editor’s note) or stand-up comedians, it’s a completely different category of people. We look at it completely differently. We can laugh at it at home, feel free to laugh at it at PS headquarters too, but for me, this is really not an appropriate way to communicate the topic of cancer,” she noted.
According to her, such a campaign style reminds of the past mistakes of the opposition party. “It really reminds me of the campaign that let’s join them, in which the PS burned down in the first elections. I say this as a voter, that I don’t understand it, and basically it touched me in a certain way,” she clarified at the end.
The singers responded to the criticism directly from the PS headquarters, defending their strategy in a private message. According to them, the goal of the campaign was mainly the reach of the contribution. “Hello, the post is now calling for support. More controversial content gets more attention,” it is stated in the message with a request that she also read the description of the post. PHOTO reports can be found in the gallery.
However, Koščová did not agree with this explanation and publicly rejected their argument. “We read the description, but the argument that more controversial content attracts more attention is not enough. Not with the strongest opposition party, which is supposed to set an example and establish a new political culture.” she reminded them of their own ambitions.
She pointed out the double standard and invited the party to think. “How would you react if Smer-SD came up with this? I would guess that you would not like the abuse of Daffodil Day as an opportunity to connect with political opponents, that you would find it inappropriate, unempathetic and low, because that is exactly what it is. And when oncology patients write to you on Facebook and find it really insensitive, I would immediately delete it, because waving around the numbers in this case really doesn’t work,” she concluded.
Dorota Nvotová defends the PS campaign
However, she took the side of the PS actress, singer and member of the non-parliamentary party Democrats Dorota Nvotová. She brought the perspective of a woman diagnosed with breast cancer to the whole thing. “As an oncology patient and a member of a competing opposition party, I have the fewest reasons to stand up for them, and that’s why I have to do it myself.” she explained at the beginning.
He believes that it is not a mistake that would be worth the wave of criticism. “Cough up the hate on PS for that status about daffodils. Nothing so terrible happened! As it is not the forum of the century, but we will not learn from it. No one gets metastases from it, and most patients who survive it look at life with much more perspective than you, healthy ones.” she emphasized.
At the same time, Nvotová pointed out that for her black humor is part of the fight against the disease. “I make fun of the disease every day. It helps. Štefan Hríb doesn’t even greet me other than: ‘Are you still alive?’ And nothing makes me smile more. A little life to the dying, for God’s sake!” she ended her post with a clear call for tolerance and unconventional humor.
