Australia investigates his trip to Spain to decide whether to deport him

The situation of Novak Djokovic in Australia remains in a state of confusion and it remains unclear if he will be able to play the tournament big slam that starts on monday in melbourne. The Minister of Immigration alex hawk avoided making a decision on Tuesday about whether to cancel the Serbian tennis player visa after he scored victory in the judicial battle to stay in the country on Monday.

Right now, the federal government is investigating whether Djokovic lied on his entry form in Australia when he said that he had not traveled in the 14 days prior to his arrival in Melbourne to a third country. But the truth is that Djokovic traveled from Belgrade to Spain in that period of time.

All travelers arriving in Australia are asked if they have “traveled or will travel in the 14 days prior to their flight to Australia”. They are also warned: “Giving false or misleading information is a serious offense. You may be subject to a civil penalty for giving false or misleading information ”, with a maximum penalty of 12 months in prison.

Djokovic passed on marbella the first days of January, before catching a plane to Melbourne via Dubai. He was training in the city of Malaga and left his mansion in the luxury complex of Sierra Blanca to travel to Melbourne with the medical exemption.

Who completed the travel declaration?

Hawk has the power to revoke a visa and before making a decision he wants to analyze this trip and the Serbian’s declaration and documentation upon arrival in the country. Djokovic told border officials that Tennis Australia completed the travel declaration on his behalf. It is not clear if this could nullify the line of investigation of the Australian Government, whose handling of the ‘Djokovic case’ has generated criticism in the interior of the country, not only in Serbia. And more so after a judge ruled Monday that Djokovic’s visa should be reinstated because he was not given enough time to prove he had a valid medical exemption.

I am pleased and grateful that the judge reversed the cancellation of my visa. Despite everything that has happened, I want to stay and try to compete @ Australia Open
I’m still focused on that. I flew here to play one of the biggest events we have in front of the amazing fans. 👇 pic.twitter.com/iJVbMfQ037

– Novak Djokovic (@DjokerNole) January 10, 2022

The federal government defends its decision to cancel Djokovic’s visa for public health reasons and that a previous covid infection, as was the case with the player, in the last six months is not a valid reason to have an exemption for not being vaccinated . The judge never ruled on that issue. He focused on the lack of procedural justice.

Diplomatic call

The Serbian’s lawyers indicated that he had a PCR test done at 1 pm on December 16 and received a positive result around 8 pm that night. On December 17, without a mask, he attended an awards ceremony with young tennis players. The player tested negative in a PCR on December 22, six days after his positive result.

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To defuse diplomatic tension, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison spoke with Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabić on Tuesday about Djokovic’s situation. “It was a constructive call and both agreed to stay in contact on the matter and further strengthen the bilateral relationship,” a statement read.