Jan 10, 2022: An Australian judge has agreed to delay any effort to deport tennis star Novak Djokovic to late Monday, as his court case continues in Melbourne.
With minutes to go before a previous court order expired, Djokovic won another temporary reprieve from Judge Anthony Kelly, this time until 8pm local time (0900 GMT) on Monday.
Government lawyers had earlier indicated they would be willing to delay the deportation order, which is hanging over the 34-year-old Serbian as he seeks to remain in Australia.
According to the Guardian, the Australian government has agreed to revoke the decision to cancel Novak Djokovic’s visa last week, meaning the visa he came to Australia on stands, and he will be released from detention and get his passport and other personal effects back.
The reason for this is the government acknowledged it didn’t give Djokovic enough time after notifying him of the intent to cancel his visa to speak to others and respond fully.
However, the immigration minister, Alex Hawke can now personally intervene and decide to cancel his visa anyway on entirely new grounds. Which the government flagged in court may be something that happens.
Should this happen, it could end up back in court because Djokovic would face being banned from Australia for three years if the minister decides to cancel the visa.
Djokovic arrived in Australia last Wednesday in hopes of defending his Australian Open crown and sealing an unprecedented 21st Grand Slam title.
Instead of welcoming the champion, he was interrogated at the airport overnight before his visa was revoked and he was transferred to Melbourne Immigration Detention Facility pending deportation. The unvaccinated star was thought to have failed to provide adequate medical evidence.
The case is to return to court after Monday.
Djokovic’s visa was revoked and he was transferred to the notorious immigration detention facility pending deportation.
In an emergency online court hearing Monday, Federal Judge Anthony Kelly heard an extended legal dispute over the process before jumping into Djokovic’s defense.
Granting the Serbian ace some breathing space, the judge agreed to postpone any effort to deport Djokovic until 8 pm (0900 GMT), acting minutes before a previous order was due to expire.
The judge, too, questioned Djokovic’s treatment.
He asked his lawyers to confirm Djokovic had been instructed to turn off his phone at 4 am and that he had been held “effectively incommunicado” for nearly eight hours until his visa was cancelled.
Monday’s proceedings were repeatedly delayed as the court’s online system crashed due to worldwide interest. Vaccine activists shared a link to the live stream, while others violated the court order by broadcasting the action live on YouTube and Twitch.
Later, the court provided its YouTube link, which immediately attracted 20,000 listeners. Djokovic’s team of top flight lawyers argued that during an overnight interrogation at the airport, he was “absolutely confused” about the situation and had not been properly redressed.
Djokovic has been in detention at the former Park Hotel, a five-storey facility that holds about 32 migrants trapped in Australia’s hardline immigration system — some for years on end.
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