Australian federal judge Anthony Kelly called the detention of Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic illegal and called for his release in the courtroom.
Djokovic has been at a hotel for illegal migrants in Melbourne since January 6 after being denied entry to Australia and having his visa canceled.
Judge Anthony Kelly ordered to overturn the authorities' decision, stating that the annulment "was unreasonable." The court also ordered the Australian government to pay all of Djokovic's expenses.
During the hearing, the judge agreed with the statement that the Serb had provided all the documents to enter Australia. “This retractor is provided by an independent commission set up by the Victorian government,” Kelly said. - It was this document that was in the hands of Djokovic. What else could this man have done? "
“In fact, he would not even have come here if he didn’t have everything he needed to enter the country,” added the judge, who also expressed his disappointment that the migration officials did not allow Djokovic to contact his lawyers and agent before his visa was canceled.
Why Djokovic is still facing deportation
In response to the court's decision, government lawyer Christopher Tran told the court that Home Secretary Karen Andrews can now use discretionary powers to revoke Djokovic's visa. The judge noted that in this case, Djokovic will be deprived of the opportunity to visit Australia for three years.
Earlier, the government stressed that the court's decision to overturn the ban does not guarantee Djokovic participation in the Australian Open, since the minister may make "another decision to cancel." "From the moment this decision is taken, the defendant will act on the basis that the applicant's visa has not been canceled," the government said in a statement.
How it all started
The Serb, who opposed the mandatory vaccination against COVID-19, announced on January 4 that he had received a medical treatment, which was approved by the authorities of the Australian state of Victoria and the country's tennis federation. After that, he traveled to Melbourne, the capital of Victoria, where the Australian Open will take place from 17 to 30 January, the first Grand Slam of the season, which he won nine times, including the last three years.
Upon arrival in Melbourne, Djokovic was denied entry to Australia for violating anti-coronavirus requirements, and his visa was canceled. The border service did not let the Serb in because he failed to provide sufficient justification for a medical withdrawal from vaccination.
At the same time, Djokovic's lawyers published a letter from the Migration Service dated January 1 stating that the Serb had fulfilled the requirements for arriving in Australia without quarantine.
Hundreds of people went to the parliament of Serbia over the situation with Djokovic Tennis Djokovic's lawyers have appealed to the federal court against the decision to annul the visa. The decision on this case was postponed until January 10, and the tennis player was placed in a special hotel for migrants. Later, the Serbian Foreign Ministry protested to the Australian Ambassador because of this situation, Djokovic's mother complained about the inhuman conditions of her son's detention, and his father compared him with Spartacus and Jesus.
In addition, the Australian Border Guard Service (ABF) on January 7 detained Czech tennis player Renata Vorachova, her visa was canceled. The athlete entered the country a week ago with the same medical lead from vaccination against COVID-19 as Djokovic. She even managed to play at one of the tournaments. Vorachova decided not to challenge the cancellation of her visa and was deported. The third participant of the Australian Open (the judge of the tournament. - RBC), who entered Australia with the same medical treatment, voluntarily left the country.
bbabo.Net