Djokovic did not have guaranteed entry to Australia, says government
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The Australian government had not given tennis star Novak Djokovic an assurance that a medical exemption that he said he had to enter Australia without a Covid-19 vaccination would be accepted, government lawyers said in a court filing on Sunday.
The filing ahead of a court hearing on Monday was in defence of the government’s decision to bar entry to the world number one player over his Covid-19 vaccination status.
Djokovic is hoping to win his 21st Grand Slam at the Australian Open, starting in Melbourne on Jan. 17.
But instead of training, the Serbian player has been confined in a hotel used for asylum seekers and is challenging the decision to cancel his visa after being stopped on arrival at Melbourne Airport early on Thursday.
The drama has rocked world tennis, caused tensions between Serbia and Australia and become a flashpoint for opponents of vaccine mandates around the world.
Himself a vocal opponent of vaccine mandates, Djokovic had declined to reveal his vaccination status or reason for seeking a medical exemption from Australia’s vaccination rules. But his legal team said in a filing to the court on Saturday that the player had been granted an exemption due to having had the virus in December.
Djokovic’s legal team said he had the necessary permissions to enter Australia, including an assessment from the Department of Home Affairs that responses on his travel declaration form indicated he met the conditions for quarantine-free arrival. The government disputed this.
“This is because there is no such thing as an assurance of entry by a non-citizen into Australia. Rather, there are criteria and conditions for entry, and reasons for refusal or cancellation of a visa,” the government’s filing said.
It said the department’s email was not an assurance “that his so-called ‘medical exemption’ would be accepted”, and his…
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Source : france24
