Its presence in Australia could even “lead to an upsurge in civil unrest”
World tennis No.1 Novac Djokovic has to wait again in a Melbourne detention center for his fate to be decided after the cancellation of his visa for the second time by the Australian government, which maintains that the player, unvaccinated against Covid-19, constitutes a “health risk”.
After the failure for the first time at the beginning of the week of a deportation procedure targeting the Serbian star, the Australian government has made a new attempt.
But Djokovic, who has never hidden his distrust of the anti-Covid vaccine, intends to fight to the end against this decision and an interim hearing is scheduled for Sunday before a Federal Court.
In his pleadings filed in court on Saturday, Immigration Minister Alex Hawke argued that Djokovic’s presence in the country “is likely to pose a health risk to the Australian community”.
He says it encourages “anti-vaccination sentiment” and could deter Australians from getting their booster shots, as the Omicron variant continues to spread at high speed.
The presence in Australia could even “lead to an upsurge in civil unrest”, added the minister.
Two days before the opening of the tournament, the participation of the Serb who must face, a priori Monday, in the first round his compatriot Miomir Kekmanovic, seems more than ever improbable.
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