‘Novak Djokovic is not a criminal’: Serbia and Australia trade volleys as tennis star remains held in hotel

“Mr. Djokovic is not being held captive in Australia," Home Affairs Minister Karen Andrews told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation on Friday. “He is free to leave at any time that he chooses to do so and Border Force will actually facilitate that.”

Her comments came as Serbian officials escalated their complaints over Djokovic’s treatment, claiming that the athlete had been “lured” to Australia only to be the target of a “witch hunt" and demanding that he be moved to better accommodation.

“Novak Djokovic is not a criminal, terrorist nor illegal immigrant, but he has been treated as such by the Australian authorities, which understandably triggers the indignation of his supporters and Serbian citizens,” Serbia’s foreign ministry said in a statement.

The ministry’s state secretary, Nemanja Starovic, spoke to the Australian ambassador to demand Djokovic be transferred to “adequate accommodation for a sportsman of his caliber” while awaiting the court decision, according to the statement. Starovic said he did not want to interfere in Australian court decisions but urged Australia to allow Djokovic to change locations in time for Orthodox Christmas on Friday.

Australian officials have refused to disclose Djokovic’s location but his supporters have gathered outside Melbourne’s Park Hotel, where the tennis star is reportedly housed along with a few dozen asylum seekers, some of whom have complained of the conditions.

Starovic also told his Australian counterpart that Serbians felt Djokovic had become “a victim of a political game and was lured to travel to Australia only to then be humiliated,” according to the statement.

The comments came on the heels of Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić claiming Djokovic was the victim of a “political witch hunt.”

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has denied that Djokovic was singled out, saying the tennis player arrived in Australia without a medical exemption required for unvaccinated visitors.

“Rules are rules," he told reporters on Thursday. “There are no special cases.”

The deepening diplomatic dispute echoes the public falling out between Australia and France last year over a canceled $67 billion submarine deal, and has been pounced upon by Morrison’s opponents ahead of an election later this year.

As tensions between Serbia and Australia escalated, the investigation continued into Djokovic’s immigration debacle.

The tennis player, who is seeking to break the record for Grand Slam titles, posted on Instagram earlier this week that he was “heading Down Under with an exemption permission."

It now appears, however, that he only had a medical exemption to participate in the tournament, not to enter the country.

Australian health officials sent tournament organizers two letters in November explaining that a recent coronavirus infection — believed to be the basis for Djokovic’s exemption request — was not sufficient to enter the country, according to local media reports.

On Friday, officials in the state of Victoria, where the tournament is held, said they had not seen the letters.

The Australian Border Force is now investigating whether other tennis players entered the country using insufficient medical exemptions, Andrews told Channel Nine.

Djokovic’s attorneys did not respond to a request for comment, and a receptionist at the law office said they could not discuss the case.

The tennis player has also been silent so far. But his wife, Jelena, posted a photo of the couple on Instagram along with a message thanking people for their support.

“It’s Christmas today for us,” she wrote. “I am taking a deep breath to calm down and find gratitude (and understanding) in this moment for all that is happening. The only law that we should all respect across every single border is Love and respect for another human being. Love and forgiveness is never a mistake but a powerful force."

Read more:

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The self-belief that made Novak Djokovic a champion has put him in limbo in Australia

‘Rules are rules’: Australia cancels Novak Djokovic’s visa amid vaccine exemption uproar