Minister Hawke used his personal powers to cancel Novak Djokovic’s visa. “If Djokovic’s lawyers decide not to appeal or lose in court, the tennis player will be deported from Australia immediately,” reads “The Age”.
Minister Hawke made a statement on Friday. “Today I exercised my power under section 133C (3) of the Migration Act to cancel the visa held by Mr Novak Djokovic for health and public order reasons, which was done in the public interest,” we read.
“This decision is in line with the Federal District Court’s order of January 10, 2022, revoking an earlier procedural fair cancellation decision. In making this decision, I carefully considered the information provided to me by the Department of the Interior, the Border Guard and Mr. Djokovic. Prime Minister Morrison is strongly committed to protecting Australia’s borders, especially in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic, “he added.
Confusion for over a week
The confusion around Novak began more than a week ago. Before departing to Australia, the Serb admitted on Instagram that he had received an exemption from vaccination and was classified as a “medical exception”. A storm broke out, and the Australian central authorities refused to let Djoković into the country.
Upon arrival, the Serb spent the night at Melbourne airport. He was then transported to an immigration hotel. His visa was canceled but he appealed to the court. On Monday, a judge overruled the decision to deport the leader of the ATP ranking. The Serbian tennis player has become free. However, this was not the end of his problems.
The media began to reveal a number of irregularities in the documents on the basis of which Djoković was admitted to Australia. The tennis player was not to enter Spain, in which he stayed within 14 days before crossing the Australian border, in the travel forms. He explained this with the “human but unintentional error” of his agent filling the paperwork.
Will there be a reference?
The investigation of Der Spiegel journalists revealed that the December results of Djokovic’s tests were to be manipulated. The Serb himself admitted that despite the knowledge of a positive COVID test result, he met the journalist “L’Équipe” because he “did not want to let him down”. Hardly anyone believed this translation. Subsequent statements and statements by members of Djokovic’s family only obscured the matter.
Already on Thursday, the Australian daily “The Age” reported: “Djokovic’s team hopes that if his visa is revoked on Friday, the appeal will be heard by the court over the weekend.” The Australian Open Grand Slam tournament starts next Monday, January 17th.
Source: Sport
Tristin is an accomplished author and journalist, known for his in-depth and engaging writing on sports. He currently works as a writer at 247 News Agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the sports industry.
