Quote: “ But we’re not going to be bullied by Serbia into making an exception to our laws for a guy whose only claim to fame is being good at tennis. He does not get special treatment even if it upsets the Serbians.”
Ok, you are treating this as if someone is trying to sneak into your country uninvited. He was invited and thought he had the proper authorization. BUT, he was wrong. He made this assumption based on the fact that other player who had received a health exemption were admitted into Australia. Novak is not naming names because he doesn’t want to get them tossed. How do I know this? My friend and tennis coach is there now as an official stringer for the event.
Hmmm, so why only Novak? Is it because you make a bigger political statement? Evidently, it is only if you are the best tennis player in the world that you get your comeuppance. In short, Novak was high profile about not being a vaccine proponent and the Australian Government is the poster boy for Covid coercion. Novak is just a great opportunity for your government to show the people who is in charge. OBEY!!!
It is evident that the issue here that is making this more than a typical Visa snafu is the vaccine requirement. It is taking an issue that could have been dealt with more diplomatically and turning into a political statement. One that has strong feelings on both sides.
I can understand Australia protecting its borders to keep Covid out. It is a wise policy that has resulted in you guys avoiding things like having your movement restricted, being forced into quarantine camps and a whole host of other horrors.
Last word, you can do what you want but there will be consequences. The players will be divided in this issue. But they will likely make the Australian Open pay the price. It has happened to Tours and events in the past. It will happen here. And don’t think Novak doesn’t have support amongst the players. He does.
Yes, I am. Because of the way it happened. Djokovic suddenly announces he has an exemption and gets on a plane almost instantly, before anybody in the Australian government can say "Hang on - we have no idea where this supposed exemption comes from." To me, it looks very much like somebody trying to get in before anybody works out he's bluffing.
He was invited and thought he had the proper authorization. BUT, he was wrong. He made this assumption based on the fact that other player who had received a health exemption were admitted into Australia. Novak is not naming names because he doesn’t want to get them tossed. How do I know this? My friend and tennis coach is there now as an official stringer for the event.
I don't believe he thought he had the proper authorisation. I don't believe he and his entourage could be that ignorant and stupid, given his experience with international travel.
Now, I know he and others are claiming others in the same circumstances got in. I won't say that is impossible. But if they did, that would seem to be because mistakes were made. Personally I think it's more likely, the situations aren't actually identical, merely similar, but we don't know that yet as far as I can see.
Hmmm, so why only Novak? Is it because you make a bigger political statement?
No. But it might well be that he's higher profile and so his papers were examined more carefully. I wouldn't rule that out.
In short, Novak was high profile about not being a vaccine proponent and the Australian Government is the poster boy for Covid coercion.
But the Australian government isn't - or at least shouldn't be - the 'poster boy for COVID coercion'. If that is the case, overseas, it's because people outside Australia have been a false narrative. The Australian government has generally opposed vaccine mandates and other forms of coercion. Some state governments in Australia, especially Victoria's have been very coercive, but that isn't the Australian government.
In fact, politically, it would be probably be much better for Scott Morrison and the Australian government for Djokovic to be allowed to play in Melbourne - because the average Victorian is incredibly angry about the idea that Djokovic is getting what seen as special treatment. Most of us (I live in Melbourne) can't work if we're not vaccinated and people are bloody pissed off at the idea that some foreign superstar wouldn't be subjected to the same rules - even if we don't like the rules. This would have been (and still could be) very damaging to Daniel Andrews and his socialist state government. It will be rather ironic if federal law winds up protecting them from that backlash.
Novak is just a great opportunity for your government to show the people who is in charge. OBEY!!!
No. There's no upside for the federal government on this. If Djokovic is deported, it will just drive home that it's the state governments that are really in charge - because they are the ones pushing vaccine mandates, not the federal government. If he isn't, the federal government looks weak and powerless in a different way.
It is evident that the issue here that is making this more than a typical Visa snafu is the vaccine requirement. It is taking an issue that could have been dealt with more diplomatically and turning into a political statement. One that has strong feelings on both sides.
I think Djokovic was relying on turning this into an international incident to try and force his way into Australia. And I believe that is fundamentally dishonest and disgusting behaviour for which he should be condemned, not celebrated. Unless he has documentation from a competent Australian Commonwealth department saying he had an exemption to enter Australia, he did not have such an exemption. In which case, he lied.
Now if it turns out he does have such documentation - which I will concede could have been issued, most likely by mistake - my position would change.
I am fully prepared to believe, by the way, that somewhere like Tennis Australia may have told him he had an exemption. But I honestly don't think he and his people could be stupid enough to think Tennis Australia has the power to issue exemptions. I would wait on something official before I got on a plane.
Last word, you can do what you want but there will be consequences. The players will be divided in this issue. But they will likely make the Australian Open pay the price. It has happened to Tours and events in the past. It will happen here. And don’t think Novak doesn’t have support amongst the players. He does.
Sure, there may be consequences.
But I don't think a tennis tournament is even remotely important compared to Australian sovereignty. I'd much rather lose the Australian Open than see any dents in Australian sovereignty. There's no comparison.
In an ideal world, I certainly wouldn't want to lose the Australian Open but I find it baffling that people think that's anything more than a very weak argument.
Elections are due in Australia in a few months and PM Morrison is trailing badly in polls and getting hammered due to the recent omicron surge and lack of testing kits.
Morrison decided to capitalise on the public disgust following the exemption given to Djokovic and flip flopped by cancelling the visa given to Djokovic after he landed at the airport.
Note...already 2 other players have already arrived and playing in Melbourne with exemption granted using the same process as Djokovic did.
This is just pure politics from a disliked politician...nothing else.