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Novak Djokovic’s lawyers stopped his deportation and the tennis player will be investigated on Saturday

In principle, the Serbian tennis player would not be held again in the hotel where he had been since January 6 when he arrived in the country and until last Monday when he was released by a judge, according to what Nick Wood, Nole’s lawyer, advanced: ” I have been informed by an Australian Government Solicitor that he does not intend to re-arrest my client tonight.”

The lawyers are expected to defend Djokovic to the last breath before the decision of the Australian Immigration Minister, Alex Hawke, to cancel his visa for the second time, which means his expulsion from the country as he is considered a risk for not being vaccinated against the virus. Covid-19 and the possibility of being prevented from entering the country for three years.

But nevertheless, analysts predict that it will be difficult for them to succeed in reversing the cancellation, since they will have to show that there was an “error of form” or that the prohibition lacks a legal basis.

Australian Immigration Minister, alex hawke, today used the special powers that the law grants him to cancel Djokovic’s visa for health and public order reasons, although the athlete can still appeal this decision in court.

“Today I have exercised my power under section 133C(3) of the Immigration Act to cancel the visa of Mr. Novak Djokovic based on health and law enforcement reasons as being in the public interest,” the minister said in a brief statement. noting that he “carefully” weighed the information provided by all parties.

Djokovic traveled to Melbourne on January 5 with a medical exemption that allowed him to play in the Australian Open without being vaccinated, although later the Immigration authorities canceled his visa and detained him until a court ruling on Monday proved the tennis player was right.

In addition to not being vaccinated against Covid-19, the tennis player acknowledged errors and inconsistencies in the declaration to enter Australia, as well as an “error of judgment” by skipping isolation after contracting the disease in Serbia in December.

Djokovic had declared upon his arrival in the southern country that he had not traveled in the previous 14 days, but the truth is that he had moved from Serbia to Spain, while in his country of origin he gave an interview to a French media knowing that he was positive in coronavirus.

The tennis player entered the draw for the Australian Open the day before, which starts on Monday, in the midst of uncertainty due to a new legal battle in the development of the tournament.

Djokovic was harshly criticized in Australia, which suffered severe restrictions due to the pandemic and where more than 77 percent of the population is vaccinated against covid-19.

Australia, which is holding elections this year, is battling a spike in cases, going from fewer than 2,000 daily infections in December to nearly 150,000 this week, amid product shortages due to infections among essential workers.

The minute by minute of the hearing of the Novak Djokovic case held on Friday, January 14

7:00 The hearing of the Djokovic case began

Judge Anthony Kelly (who on Monday agreed with the athlete for the first cancellation of his entry permit) began his speech by reviewing the history of the procedures that led to this second cancellation of Djokovic’s visa.

7:02 Hearing Case Djokovic: the judge considered it urgent

Judge Kelly noted that in an urgent circumstance, if necessary, a party can file an application before the formal process that starts the court case. The court may be prepared to accept a commitment from the parties to file and deliver an affidavit showing important documents as soon as possible.

7:05 The judge considered moving the case to Federal Court

“While I have what appears to be unappealable power to transfer this proceeding to another court, it is qualified by the requirement that the Federal Court of Australia confirm the order I issue.” Judge Kelly resolved this item in a matter of minutes.

7:10 The judge spoke of a provisional order for Djokovic that would delay his deportation

The judge suggested that the parties reach an agreement and that this could lead to a brief provisional order until 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, January 15 (2:00 a.m. in Argentina) to avoid Djokovic’s deportation. Even more so when the tennis player was summoned to an immigration interview.

7:15 Djokovic’s lawyer asked for an injunction against deportation

Nicholas Wood, Djokovic’s lawyer, asked the court for an injunction to prevent his deportation. He promised to submit a written request as soon as possible. I would do it in a few hours, before the end of Friday in Australia. It was set to do so before 22:15 Australian time (7:15 in Argentina). Wood worries about wasting time on the “extraordinary situation” Djokovic finds himself in. He suggested that the case be kept in Federal Circuit Court to avoid wasting time transferring it to Federal Court.

7:25 Djokovic will not be stopped again

Djokovic’s lawyer confirmed that the tennis player would not be arrested. After speaking with a solicitor for the Australian Government Solicitor, he was informed that he “does not intend to re-arrest my client tonight”. He confirmed the interview with Immigration tomorrow. He proposes to present arguments this Saturday and that a hearing be held on Sunday to decide definitively on this case. “We are in this situation because of the time the minister has taken to make a decision,” says Nick Wood.

7.40 “A decision made by anti-vaccine sentiment”

Djokovic’s lawyer considered that the minister, by canceling Djokovic’s visa, was guided by a “potential growth of anti-vaccine sentiment” if Djokovic is allowed to remain in Australia. He claims that the minister did not consider the effect of forcing Djokovic to leave the country. “Djokovic is a person with medical contraindications for vaccination,” he said.

7.50 Djokovic will not be deported today

Stephen Lloyd, a lawyer representing minister Alex Hawke, assures that Djokovic will not be deported from the country until there is a firm decision and confirms that he will not be arrested tonight, as the tennis player’s lawyer advanced before. He affirms that he wants Djokovic to go to the Immigration Ministry at 8:00 a.m. (10:00 p.m. this Friday in Spain) and that he can be in contact with his lawyers if he needs it.

7.55 Judge Kelly considered that there are still issues to be resolved

Judge Kelly noted that it must be clarified whether “Djokovic had a medical exemption, and if he had his declaration of travel to Australia already evaluated and had been authorized to enter the country.”

Shubham Bangwal

Shubham Bangwal Senior Journalist at People News Chronicle whose Special interest is in Politics, Crime, Entertainment and Technology news.

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