Dutch threaten Eurovision boycott over gay march

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Dutch group De Toppers will withdraw from the Eurovision song contest in Moscow if Russian authorities crack down on a gay parade planned for Saturday.

Singer and songwriter, Gordon, part of the flamboyant Dutch trio, said he is ready to boycott Saturday's finals. De Toppers are performing at the semifinals in Moscow on Thursday.

"If we get to the final and the demonstration is suppressed by force I refuse to get on that stage in Moscow," Gordon told Dutch television late on Tuesday.

"If my kind of people are discriminated against in this way, there is no reason for me to be there," he said.

"I will take the first plane home."

Gay rights campaigners have vowed to ignore a potential ban and march through Moscow on Saturday a few hours before the Eurovision final.

The Eurovision Song Contest, now in its 54th year, is watched across Europe and was originally promoted as a way to help unify the region after World War Two.

(Reporting by Harro ten Wolde; Editing by Louise Ireland)