The tennis player world number one, Serbian Novak Djokovic, is free to leave Melbourne city hotel, where he has been held since Thursday after the cancellation of his visa to return whenever he wants to his country of origin, the Australian Interior Minister, Karen Andrews, said this Friday.
Djokovic, who arrived in Melbourne Wednesday night with a medical exemption that the allowed to defend his title at the Australian Open without being vaccinated against COVID-19, is confined in a hotel managed by immigration authorities waiting for the Australian justice address an appeal against your deportation on Monday.
“Mr. Djokovic is not captive in Australia (because) he is free to leave at any time he decides to do so and the Border Force will surely facilitate it,” Minister Andrews said in an interview with the Australian public broadcaster. ABC.
The comment comes after the Serbian Foreign Ministry presented this Thursday a formal protest to the ambassador from Australia in Serbia, Daniel Emery, for the “indecent treatment” that the tennis player is receiving in Melbourne.
According to a government statement, Serbia expects Emery to make a personal effort so that Djokovic get suitable accommodation for an athlete of his rank while awaiting the court’s decision.
The vaccine is mandatory to enter Australia
The Australian Interior Minister also defended this Friday the decision of the immigration authorities that had granted the 34-year-old Serbian a visa and later revoked it, since it was determined when he arrived in the country that he did not have sufficient evidence to demonstrate that you meet the requirements imposed in Australia by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It is the responsibility of the person to ensure that they have all the necessary documentation that is needed to enter Australia,” Andrews said.
Djokovic appeals visa suspension and Australia delays deportation to Monday
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The dispute over the medical exemptions granted by Tennis Australia and the regional government of Victoria have motivated the Executive of Canberra to investigate similar permits granted to at least two other people participating in the tournament in Melbourne, which will be held between 17 and next January 30.
The vaccine is mandatory to enter Australia, but there are temporary exemptions for people who have “a serious medical condition”, who cannot be vaccinated because they have contracted COVID-19 in the previous six months or have had an adverse reaction to the drug, among other reasons.
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Australia cancels visa to another tennis player amid controversy with Djokovic
The Australian authorities have canceled the visa for the Czech tennis player Renata Voráčová, who will have to return to his country, amid the controversy over the decision to revoke the entry permit for Serbian tennis player Novac Djokovic for not being vaccinated against covid-19.
A source from the border control authority confirmed the measure, which was taken despite the fact that The tennis player was already in the country and had played a preparation match prior to the Australian Open.
Voráčová, detained on Thursday and of whom it is unknown whether she will appeal the decision, She was transferred to the same hotel in Melbourne where Djokovic is being held. by immigration authorities until a court decides on Monday whether to expatriate or not.
“Australian Border Force cancels tennis player Renata Voracova’s visa ahead of Australian Open https://t.co/PvSVkgVaAu“
— Gavin Coote (@GavinCoote) January 7, 2022
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