SERB & VOLLEY
Protests, Djokovic fans from across the world enraged as Serbian star spends Orthodox Christmas in Oz detention
Melbourne, Jan. 7: Novak Djokovic’s fans rallied in the rain Friday to protest the tennis superstar’s shock detention in Australia pending a court hearing on Monday, a development that reverberated globally and sparked an angry reaction from Serbia.
About 50 protesters — a mix of tennis fans, antivaccine demonstrators and immigrant rights activists — congregated on Orthodox Christmas Day outside a detention facility in Melbourne.
A priest from the Holy Trinity Serbian Orthodox Church in Melbourne asked to visit Djokovic to celebrate Orthodox Christmas but was turned down by immigration officials because the hotel is under lockdown.
“Our Christmas is rich in many customs, and it is so important that a priest visits him. The whole thing around this event is appalling. That he has to spend Christmas in detention... it is unthinkable,” the church’s dean, Milorad Locard, told the Australian Broadcasting Corp.
The Australian Border Force said on Friday that after further investigations into two other people connected to the Australian Open, one voluntarily left the country and another was taken into detention pending deportation.
The Czech Embassy identified one of them as 38-year-old doubles player Renata Vorcov and said she won’t play in the tournament.
Djokovic was held after arrival in Australia this week — his visa revoked for failing to meet the country’s tough pandemic restrictions.
Australian authorities said the Serbian star — who has declared himself against vaccines and claimed to have an exemption — provided evidence of neither and was detained, pending deportation. Djokovic secured an exemption to play in the Australian Open this month but the Australian government said he did not meet the standard required to enter the country.
At a Belgrade rally, his father Srdjan Djokovic told a crowd his son was the victim of a “political witch hunt” and “corona fascism”.
“Jesus was crucified and endured many things but is still alive among us,” he said on Orthodox Christmas Eve. “Novak is also crucified... the best sportsman and man in the world.”
His mother Djina Djokovic told reporters at the rally: “They are keeping him as a prisoner. It is just not fair. It is not human.”
DJOKER THANKS FANS
Djokovic on Friday thanked people “around the world” for their support. He said on Instagram: “Thank you to people around the world for your continuous support. I can feel it and it is greatly appreciated.”