Australian Minister Says Djokovic Not Detained

Australia Home Affairs Minister Karen Andrews has said Novak Djokovic is “free to leave any time” and is not being detained, while the Serb’s family and fan protests rage on.

The 34-year-old is currently being held in isolation at the Park Hotel in Carlton, Melbourne, awaiting the outcome of an appeal against the decision by the Australian Border Force (ABF) to cancel the reigning Australian Open champion’s entry visa and deport him. The appeal is set to be heard on Monday.

Djokovic has never revealed whether he is vaccinated against Covid-19, but has criticised mandates ruling that players must be double-jabbed, and posted on social media before setting off to say he had received “exemption permission.”

Australia Home Affairs Minister Andrews maintained Djokovic was not being detained under any duress in the country, however, as he waits in quarantine for his appeal against visa cancellation to be heard.

“Mr Djokovic is not being held captive in Australia,” she told ABC. “He is free to leave at any time that he chooses to do so and Border Force will actually facilitate that.

“We treat all people who are in immigration detention fairly, equitably.”
She added: “A visa was granted for entry, but that does not guarantee entry.

“He (Djokovic), along with any other individual who is seeking to enter Australia, also has to meet the entry requirements which at this point includes medical evidence of vaccination or alternatively medical reasons why that individual cannot be vaccinated.

“He hasn’t met the entry requirements – there is a lot of chatter about the visa, but that in my understanding is not the issue, it is the entry requirements…that he was not able to produce the evidence which was needed for entry into Australia.”