Roger Waters gigs in Poland canceled for Ukraine war remarks

Roger Waters‘ upcoming shows in Poland in April 2023 have been canceled because of the remarks made about the war in Ukraine.

In an open letter the artist published on his website earlier this month, addressed to Ukraine’s First Lady Olena Zelenska, Waters blames Ukraine’s “extreme nationalists [that] have set your country on the path to this disastrous war.” Besides, Waters reprimends the West and the U.S. for supplying Ukraine with military weapons, to which Zelenska responded with the following tweet:

It is Russia which invaded 🇺🇦, destroys cities and kills civilians. Ukrainians defend their land and their children’s future.

If we give up — we will not exist tomorrow. If 🇷🇺 gives up — war will be over.@rogerwaters, you’d better ask RF’s President for peace. Not Ukraine.

— Olena Zelenska / Олена Зеленська (@ZelenskaUA) September 6, 2022

The letter also led Krakow city councillor Łukasz Wantuch to instruct his constituents to boycott Waters‘ shows in Poland in 2023. The city councillor is also behind a motion to declare Waters “persona non grata.” It was set to be voted on by the council on September 28.

Waters responded in his social media:

“It is true that a town councillor in Krakow, a Mr Łukasz Wantuch has threatened to hold a meeting asking the council to declare me “Persona non grata” because of my public efforts to encourage all involved in the disastrous war in Ukraine, especially the governments of the USA and Russia, to work towards a negotiated peace, rather than escalate matters towards a bitter end that could be nuclear war and the end of all life on this planet. Not withstanding that this chap Łukasz Wantuch seems to know nothing of my history of working, all my life, at some personal cost, in the service of human rights, he, in an article in a local newspaper urged the good people of Krakow not to buy tickets to my show. Not very democratic sir? If Mr Łukasz Wantuch achieves his aim, and my forthcoming concerts in Krakow are cancelled, it will be a sad loss for me, because I have been looking forward to sharing my message of love with the people of Poland, something I have been doing on many tours over a career that has lasted in excess of fifty years. And also, regrettably, it will deny the people of Krakow the opportunity to see my current show, “This Is Not A Drill,” which is an important addition to a lifetime’s body of work. His draconian censoring of my work will deny them the opportunity to make up their own minds.”