Dhe leader of the tennis world rankings will probably have to leave Australia for good a week after his arrival. Number one seeded Novak Djokovic will therefore not be able to defend his title at the Australian Open in Melbourne. After a growing body of inconsistencies about the star’s behavior, Australian Immigration Minister Alex Hawke ruled on Friday afternoon local time that Djokovic would be deported immediately.
“Today I have exercised my authority and revoked Mr. Novak Djokovic’s visa for reasons of health and good order, as this is in the public interest,” Hawke said after a review that spanned six days.
Referring to the government under Prime Minister Scott Morrison and the wave of omicron infections in Australia, Hawke added: “The Morrison government is determined to protect Australia’s borders, especially in connection with the corona pandemic.” rumors in Canberra that the government is preparing for the deportation of the tennis multi-millionaire at all levels, including increased police presence in Melbourne.
Djokovic trains in Melbourne
The player Renata Voráčová, who was expelled on Saturday, had already filed claims for damages against Tennis Australia on Wednesday. After the decision, it was completely open whether the Serb’s lawyers, as announced, wanted to lodge an immediate appeal against the Hawke decision – which appears legally demanding.
Djokovic himself seemed unaffected by all of this: he was still training in Melbourne in the morning. However, the afternoon training had been brought forward, which indicated uncertainties in the process. On Monday, the Melbourne court sharply criticized the procedure at the Australian border and the behavior of the border guards.
The Australian government recognized this and granted the athlete a visa, which then freed him from detention pending deportation. After the judge’s decision, however, the inconsistencies increased. On Wednesday, the 34-year-old apologized via social networks for misconduct and an appearance without a mask, although he was allegedly infected with Corona.
His second mistake, the statement on the entry form that he had not been in a third country for more than 14 days, he blamed on an “agent”. That didn’t help much, because the traveler himself has to put his head down for the information. The fact that Djokovic then added: “We live in challenging times in a global pandemic and such mistakes sometimes happen,” Australians felt as a provocation. He remained silent on the content of the allegation that he had been in both Spain and Serbia.
“It is important to distinguish between a visa and the conditions under which you want to enter Australia,” Morrison had already explained – the border guards had apparently behaved incorrectly, but the unvaccinated top player is not entitled to the visa. Morrison, who has come under heavy pressure, tried to capitalize on a visa withdrawal beforehand: “Our border protection policy is key to the success of the government and Australia in general, which has one of the lowest death rates, the strongest economy and the highest vaccination rates in the world world has.”
Hawke now made the decision solely from the perspective of protecting the health of Australians. Nevertheless, the behavior of Djokovic and his clan may have played a role: the abuse of the Australian government, but also the misrepresentation on the visa application, for which Djokovic has to answer as the visa recipient. That alone would have been enough to dismiss him.
The decision was preceded by a comment from Australia’s Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce on Thursday: “The vast majority of Australians did not like the idea of another individual, be it a tennis player, the King of Spain or Queen of England, being placed under a different set of rules come here than anyone else.” Prime Minister Morrison cannot govern without the controversial Conservative in his own party. David Southwick, Liberal MP in Victoria, said it would take years to repair Australia’s reputation on the world stage.
In the meantime, the Australian Open has been severely curtailed in view of the almost one hundred thousand corona infections in Australia on Thursday: only half of the spectators are now allowed. The government of the state of Victoria said that tickets sold would be reimbursed and that the wearing of masks was mandatory – a sentence that should ring in Djokovic’s ears after his unprotected performance in Belgrade.
Hawke, who now made the decision, is very close to Morrison. As one of the three ministers in the Ministry of the Interior, he is seen as an experienced Liberal warhorse despite being only 43 years old. Hawke sits in a Bible study group with Morrison. In a speech to parliament, the minister said: “I firmly believe in the ideas of mercy, forgiveness, redemption and a second chance.” From his point of view, Djokovic had enough chances that he didn’t use.
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