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Melbourne (AFP) – The Australian Federal Court rejected on Sunday, January 16, Novak Djokovic’s appeal against his deportation, ordered by the government, which considers that the number one in the world represents a “health risk” for not having been vaccinated against Covid-19.
The decision, made unanimously by all three judges on the court, definitively dashes the 34-year-old Serb’s hopes of breaking the record and winning his 21st Grand Slam title at the Australian Open, which starts on Monday.
The court’s decision, announced by its president, James Allsop, is virtually impossible for the player to challenge, forcing him to leave Australia immediately with possible long-term repercussions for his career.
Djokovic was allowed to leave the detention center where he was held on Saturday and watched the four-hour hearing online from his lawyers’ offices in Melbourne.
In his findings in court on Saturday, Immigration Minister Alex Hawke had argued that Djokovic’s presence in the country was “likely a health risk” and that it fostered “anti-vaccine sentiment” and could deter Australians from receive booster doses as the Omicron variant spreads rapidly across the country.
The presence of the champion in Australia could even “provoke an increase in civil unrest,” the minister added. While calling the risk of Djokovic himself infecting Australians “negligible,” the minister said his “disregard” for Covid-19 health rules set a bad example.
A leader for the anti-vaccine movement
In court on Sunday, Djokovic’s lawyers called the arrest and possible deportation of his client “illogical and irrational.
The government “doesn’t know what Mr. Djokovic’s views are at the moment,” argued lawyer Nick Wood, saying his client has never publicly supported the anti-vaccine movement.
The government’s lawyer, Stephen Lloyd, disputed that the champion’s failure to get vaccinated nearly two years after the start of the pandemic and his repeated disregard for health regulations, including not isolating himself when he knew he was infected, were sufficient proof of his position.
Novak Djokovic was arrested upon arrival in Australia on January 5 and initially placed in administrative detention.
The player, who contracted Covid-19 in December, showed an exemption to enter the country without being vaccinated, but the authorities did not accept it.
The Australian government suffered a humiliating setback on January 10, when a judge blocked Djokovic’s deportation, reinstated his visa and ordered his immediate release.
But the Immigration Minister struck back on Friday and canceled his visa for the second time under his discretionary powers, citing “reasons of health and public order”.
On Sunday, after the hearing, Djokovic was transferred back to the Park Hotel, the now world-famous detention center for illegal aliens, which he is now expected to leave only to catch his plane home.
In a statement published on Wednesday, the tennis player admitted to incorrectly filling out his declaration to enter Australia.
Serbia accuses Australia of mistreatment
The 86-time ATP champion, who was seen in Serbia and Spain in the two weeks before his arrival, when according to the medical exemption he had Covid-19, alleged “human error”.
Australians have been enduring some of the world’s toughest restrictions against Covid-19 for almost two years. Furthermore, with the prospect of elections in May, the political context was very charged.
In recent days, pressure has mounted on Conservative Prime Minister Scott Morrison, whom the Labor opposition has accused of “incompetence.”
Djokovic’s case is also being closely watched in Serbia, where he is being regarded as a national hero.
On Friday, President Aleksandar Vucic accused Australia of “mistreatment” of him.
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