Yep, it's hard to see how he can stay. He was either trying to circumvent the entry requirements so he could attract the best field or he was unbelievably stupid. Either way, he goes.
Does this help or hurt Djokovic? It helps Djokovic in a PR sense as it suggests he may well have been relying on TA advice rather than trying to barge his way through. TA is the bad guy rather than him. But it might be bad for Djokovic's Federal Court case. It shifts blame away from the Federal Govt to a private organisation. The Federal Govt would be able to counter Djokovic's attempt to suggest the Federal Govt had created a legitimate expectation he was entitled to enter Australia. It was TA which created that legitimate expectation. Moreover, once TA had been firmly advised that the "infected within 6 months" exception wasn't valid for entry to Australia, the Federal Govt would be able to argue it was reasonable for it to assume that TA would ensure medical exemptions would meet the Federal Govt standards.
On the other hand, the Federal Govt isn't totally off the hook. The letter shows it was well aware that there was a glaring difference between medical exemptions granted for the purposes of Victorian events and those that would be valid for entry into Australia. In other words, it was well aware that medical exemptions granted in Victoria couldn't be relied on to establish a right to enter. It should have scrutinised entry paperwork more carefully. Did Greg Hunt communicate with the Immigration Minister and the ABF to ensure that unvaccinated players didn't jump on a plane? I'd imagine Djokovic's lawyers will be homing in on this issue.
That's where the comments from Mr Rivzi come in. Visas shouldn't have been granted on the strength of TA paperwork without verifying that any exemption met Federal Govt criteria. And if there were ABF officers at Dubai Airport, they should have asked Djokovic on what grounds he had obtained a medical exemption. They should have been alerted to watch out for ATP & WTA players and verify their paperwork.
On the other hand, would it be fair to say that TA was almost like a representative of all of the players, including Djokovic? It seems players were leaving TA to deal with the government as workers would leave a Union to deal on their behalf. The more that TA is identified with the players, the more the players are tainted by the misbehaviour of TA.
Does this help or hurt Djokovic? It helps Djokovic in a PR sense as it suggests he may well have been relying on TA advice rather than trying to barge his way through. TA is the bad guy rather than him. But it might be bad for Djokovic's Federal Court case. It shifts blame away from the Federal Govt to a private organisation. The Federal Govt would be able to counter Djokovic's attempt to suggest the Federal Govt had created a legitimate expectation he was entitled to enter Australia. It was TA which created that legitimate expectation. Moreover, once TA had been firmly advised that the "infected within 6 months" exception wasn't valid for entry to Australia, the Federal Govt would be able to argue it was reasonable for it to assume that TA would ensure medical exemptions would meet the Federal Govt standards.
On the other hand, the Federal Govt isn't totally off the hook. The letter shows it was well aware that there was a glaring difference between medical exemptions granted for the purposes of Victorian events and those that would be valid for entry into Australia. In other words, it was well aware that medical exemptions granted in Victoria couldn't be relied on to establish a right to enter. It should have scrutinised entry paperwork more carefully. Did Greg Hunt communicate with the Immigration Minister and the ABF to ensure that unvaccinated players didn't jump on a plane? I'd imagine Djokovic's lawyers will be homing in on this issue.
That's where the comments from Mr Rivzi come in. Visas shouldn't have been granted on the strength of TA paperwork without verifying that any exemption met Federal Govt criteria. And if there were ABF officers at Dubai Airport, they should have asked Djokovic on what grounds he had obtained a medical exemption. They should have been alerted to watch out for ATP & WTA players and verify their paperwork.
On the other hand, would it be fair to say that TA was almost like a representative of all of the players, including Djokovic? It seems players were leaving TA to deal with the government as workers would leave a Union to deal on their behalf. The more that TA is identified with the players, the more the players are tainted by the misbehaviour of TA.