Novak Djokovic to be deported from Australia
after federal court upholds visa cancellation
Serbian tennis player says he is ‘extremely
disappointed’ by decision but will cooperate with authorities to leave the
country
Novak Djokovic is set to be deported from Australia
after the federal court dismissed his bid to overturn his visa cancellation. Photograph: Loren Elliott/Reuters
Paul Karp
@Paul_Karp
Sun 16 Jan 2022 07.51 GMT
Novak
Djokovic will be deported from Australia ahead of the Australian Open after the
full federal court dismissed the world No 1’s bid to restore his visa.
On Sunday
the court rejected a challenge to the decision of Australian immigration
minister, Alex Hawke, to cancel the visa on the basis Djokovic’s presence in
Australia might risk “civil unrest” as he is a “talisman of anti-vaccination
sentiment”.
Chief
Justice James Allsop announced the court unanimously dismissed Djokovic’s
application, with costs to be paid by the tennis star.
Allsop
explained the decision of the court did not reflect on “the merits or wisdom of
the decision” but rather whether it was so irrational as to be unlawful. Full
reasons will follow at a later date.
In a
statement Djokovic said he was “extremely disappointed” with the ruling,
acknowledging it meant he “cannot stay in Australia and participate in the
Australian Open”.
“I respect
the court’s ruling and I will cooperate with the relevant authorities in
relation to my departure from the country,” he said.
“I am
uncomfortable that the focus of the past weeks has been on me and I hope that
we can all now focus on the game and tournament I love.
“I would
like to wish the players, tournament officials, staff, volunteers and fans all
the best for the tournament.”
Djokovic
said he intended to take some time to “rest and recuperate” before making any
further comment.
Djokovic’s
lawyers had argued Hawke’s decision was “illogical, irrational or unreasonable”
and the minister based it on Djokovic’s public statements about vaccination
without actually seeking his views.
In fresh
submissions overnight, Djokovic’s lawyers added that Hawke had failed to
consider the impact on anti-vaccination sentiment if his visa were cancelled.
In court on
Sunday, the minister’s counsel, Stephen Lloyd, argued Australia “must not be
bound to suffer the presence of an alien for fear of what might happen if they
were removed”.
Use of the
ministerial power to cancel a visa comes with a three-year ban on re-entering
Australia, except in compelling circumstances, such as compassionate or
Australian national interest grounds.
Djokovic
arrived in Australia on the evening of 5 January. He believed that a visa
granted on 18 November and a medical exemption approved by Tennis Australia and
a Victorian government independent expert panel would be sufficient to enter
Australia.
Djokovic’s
visa was first cancelled by Australian Border Force hours after he arrived at
Melbourne airport and he was taken to a detention hotel.
On Monday a
federal circuit court judge restored Djokovic’s visa, concluding it was
unreasonable for the ABF to renege on a deal to give him more time at the
airport to address the exemption issue.
After a
week’s deliberation, Hawke cancelled Djokovic’s visa again on Friday on the new
ground that his presence might be a risk to “health and good order”.
In a
statement, Hawke welcomed the unanimous decision, arguing that Australia’s
“strong border protection policies” had both “kept us safe during the pandemic”
and “are fundamental to safeguarding Australia’s social cohesion”.
“Australians
have made great sacrifices to get to this point [in the pandemic] and the
Morrison government is firmly committed to protecting this position, as the
Australian people expect.”
The
Australian prime minister, Scott Morrison, welcomed “the decision to keep our
borders strong and keep Australians safe”. “It’s now time to get on with the
Australian Open and get back to enjoying tennis over the summer.”
Reaction in
Australia to the court result was mixed. The Labor opposition’s home affairs
spokeswoman, Kristina Keneally, said the Morrison government had made itself “a
laughing stock on the world stage”.
“The
Morrison government’s own argument before the court was that Mr Djokovic’s visa
should be cancelled because his presence here may foster anti-vaccination
sentiment based on what he did and said before he was granted a visa,” Keneally
said.
“This must
prompt the question, why did Mr Morrison’s government grant him a visa to come
to Australia in the first place?”
Australian
tennis star, Nick Kyrgios, expressed disappointment with a face-palm emoji. He
was one of few players who had called for Djokovic to be allowed to stay and
play.
Liberty
Victoria president, Michael Stanton, said the case had “drawn attention to
Australia’s dysfunctional visa cancellation and detention regimes and to the
troubling use of the minister’s God-like personal powers”.
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