Prime Minister of Serbia gives Novak Djokovic benefit of doubt over COVID-19 breach, says she will "take insight" after the Serb's immigration investigation is over
In an interview on the BBC, Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabic gave her thoughts on Novak Djokovic's visa controversy and his apparent breach of COVID-19 regulations in Serbia. Brnabic said she would look into the matter once more information was made available.
Novak Djokovic's visa was revoked by Australia's federal government on Wednesday, following which the Serb was detained by the Border Forces. Djokovic's lawyers, however, managed to successfully challenge the decision in court, thereby averting a deportation scare. But Immigration Minister Alex Hawke is still looking into the matter and will have the final say regarding the Serb's visa.
Djokovic, however, has opened a new can of worms with his latest statement on Instagram. The Serb admitted that he didn't isolate himself immediately after testing positive for COVID-19 on December 17 (although his lawyers claimed he was "tested and diagnosed" on December 16). He also attended several public events between December 16-18.
Against this background, the Prime Minister of Serbia asserted that she will have more information regarding Djokovic's situation once the Minister of Immigration makes his position clear. While Brnabic gave Djokovic the benefit of the doubt, she said it would be a "clear breach of rules" if the Serb didn't isolate himself after being notified that he was COVID-19 positive.
"We will have an insight into that information because I think that information is part of the investigation that is currently led by the immigration minister of Australia," Brnabic said. ""It would be a clear breach of rules, you're positive, you'd have to be in isolation. I don't know when he received the test result, and when he read it," Brnabic said.
Going back to the L'Equipe interview - he's admitting in this statement that he broke Serbia's COVID-19 rules as well.
Prime Minister Ana Brnabic told the BBC goig out afer a positive result was a "clear breach".
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If Djokovic is found to have breached health regulations in Serbia, he could be looking at a hefty fine or imprisonment of up to three years.
The maximum penalty for breaching Serbian health regulations is three years prison.
ohchr.org/Documents/Issu… https://t.co/PcJvmNKaNt
"They made public a part of Novak Djokovic's medical documentation, which I am not even sure was fair on their part" - Ana Brnabic
Ana Brnabic, on her part, was more outraged at the Australian government for uploading Djokovic's positive test on their website.
"In the end, they made public a part of Novak Djokovic's medical documentation, which I am not even sure was fair on their part to make it public, because it is not fair to make anyone's medical documentation public unless they had Novak's explicit consent for that."
The Prime Minister also expressed hope that the decision surrounding Djokovic's Australian Open campaign would be made soon.
"I hope that final decision will be announced soon. Uncertainty is not good for any of the stakeholders, neither Djokovic nor the Australian Open," she concluded.
If reports are to be believed, Immigration Minister Alex Hawke is yet to make a decision on whether to cancel the Serb's visa. Djokovic in all liklihood will not be deported given that he has recently recovered from COVID-19 and is not, at present, an unreasonable health risk to Australia.
The World No. 1, on his part, is all set to kick off his campaign for a record-breaking 21st Major in Melbourne later this month. The Serb will also be vying for a fourth consecutive Australian Open title - a feat that is yet to be achieved in the Open Era.