An Australian judge has reinstated tennis star Novak Djokovic’s visa and ruled that he be released from five days of immigration detention spent in Melbourne hotel. Judge Anthony Kelly ordered on Monday that Djokovic be released within 30 minutes of his decision and his passport and other travel documents returned to him after his visa was revoked upon arrival to Melbourne Airport, rekindling his chance for a record 21st Grand Slam title at the upcoming Australian Open 2022 as he was included in the men’s draw on Thursday afternoon as the Number one seed.
POSSIBLE DEPORTATION STILL ON MAP However, Government lawyer Christopher Tran told the judge after the ruling that the Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs, Alex Hawke, “will consider whether to exercise a personal power of cancellation.” to again revoke Djokovic’s visa, which would mean Djokovic, 34, could again face deportation and could miss the Australian Open, which starts on January 17, 2022.
UNVACCINATED ATHLETE The Australian government cancelled 34-year-old Djokovic’s visa shortly after he arrived in Melbourne late Wednesday to play in the Australian Open because officials decided he didn’t meet the criteria for an exemption to an entry requirement that all non-citizens be fully vaccinated for COVID-19. Djokovic, who court documents say is unvaccinated, argued he did not need proof of vaccination because he had evidence that he had been infected with the coronavirus last month.
INFECTED A MONTH AGO Australian medical authorities have ruled that a temporary exemption for the vaccination rule can be provided to people who have been infected with COVID-19 within six months. Circuit Court Judge Anthony Kelly noted that Djokovic had provided officials at Melbourne’s airport with a medical exemption given him by Tennis Australia, which is organizing the tournament that starts on January 17, and two medical panels. “The point I’m somewhat agitated about is what more could this man have done?” Kelly asked Djokovic’s lawyer, Nick Wood.
TRAVEL DIFFICULTIES FOR THE ‘UNVACCINATED’ The transcripts of Djokovic’s interview with Border Force officials and his testimony revealed a “repeated plea to the officers he was dealing with that to his understanding; uncontradicted, he had done absolutely everything that he understood was required for him to enter Australia,” Wood said. Judge Anthony Kelly ordered Djokovic to be released from hotel quarantine during his court hearing. It was not clear where Djokovic relocated to during his hearing. He did not appear on screen in the first hours of the virtual hearing. Djokovic’s lawyers submitted 11 grounds for appeal against his visa cancellation. The lawyers described the cancellation as “seriously illogical,” irrational and legally unreasonable.
SHALLOW GROUNDS Lawyers for Home Affairs Minister Karen Andres said in their submission that if the judge ruled in Djokovic’s favour, officials might cancel his visa a second time; they said the vaccination requirement could only be deferred for arriving travellers who have had a COVID-19 infection if their illness was acute: “There is no suggestion that the applicant (Djokovic) had `acute major medical illness’ in December” when he tested positive, the written submission said.
COVID-19 RUSSIAN ROULETTE The Serbian star issued a statement this Wednesday saying his assistants had ‘incorrectly declared‘ that he had not travelled anywhere in the 14-days before departing for Melbourne last week. Reports have surfaced showing he travelled to Serbia and Spain. Djokovic also admitted he didn’t immediately isolate after a positive Covid test saying he did not know he tested positive for COVID-19 on December 16 until the next day, after he appeared at a tennis event in Belgrade to present awards to children. He also acknowledged that he should have cancelled a planned magazine interview and photoshoot the day after learning of his status.
HOT LEGAL TOPIC The virtual hearing crashed several times because of an overwhelming number of people from around the world trying to watch the proceedings. as Djokovic’s case was trending on many social media websites, many athletes commented opinionating on his incident, some fans have protested against the measures taken by the Australian government to withhold the tennis star demanding to release him. While some say Djokovic has lost his credibility from the actions he did but the statement he made on his social media, on Wednesday, showed no deliberate negligence was made during his activities in the first days of his positive testing.
NOVAK’S STATEMENT fully published on his Instagram and Twitter accounts said he had no intentions to cause harm to anyone and he genuinely did not know he tested positive during his appearances: “I want to emphasize that I have tried very hard to ensure the safety of everyone and my compliance with testing obligations. I attended a basketball game in Belgrade on 14 December after which it was reported that a number of people tested positive with COVID-19. Despite having no COVID symptoms, I took a rapid antigen test on 16 December which was negative, and out of an abundance of caution, also took an official and approved PC test on that same day.” Novak stated.
He added “The next day I attended a tennis event in Belgrade to present awards to children and took a rapid antigen test before going to the event, and it was negative. I was asymptomatic and felt good, and I had not received the notification of a positive PCR test result until after that event. The next day, on 18 December I was at my tennis centre in Belgrade to fulfil a long-standing commitment for a L’Equipe interview and photoshoot. I cancelled all other events except for the L’Equipe interview.”
“I felt obliged to go ahead and conduct the L’Equipe interview as I didn’t want to let the journalist down, but did ensure I socially distanced and wore a mask except when my photograph was being taken. While I went home after the interview to isolate for the required period, on reflection, this was an error of judgement and I accept that I should have rescheduled this commitment.” Novak said in his statement.
ATP TOUR STATMENT on Novak Djokovic entry into Australia: “The ATP fully respects the sacrifices the people of Australia have made since the onset of COVID-19 and the stringent immigration policies that have been put in place. Complications in recent days related to player entry into Australia have however highlighted the need for clearer understanding, communication and application of the rules.”
Source: AIPS