Asked if the deportation of Mr Djokovic following 11 days of limbo including time in immigration detention could turn the nine time Australian Open winner into an anti-vaccination martyr, Ms Andrews said the court had heard that argument and her main concern was border protection.
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The opposition used the debacle to call into question the federal government’s competence, with Labor’s spokeswoman for home affairs, Kristina Keneally, asking why Border Force officers stationed at overseas airports, including in Dubai where Mr Djokovic transited, could not have intervened before he boarded.
She said it was an “embarrassing bungle” and it would not be feasible, once the international border fully reopened, for people to get a visa to come to Australia only to be thrown out of the country upon their arrival.
Senator Keneally also accused Mr Morrison of acting “tough” on Mr Djokovic but being “a lamb, weak and timid” when it came to dealing with his own MPs undermining confidence in vaccines.
In December, Mr Morrison said he was disappointed Senator Antic had misled him about his vaccination status after the South Australian was taken into a quarantine hotel upon arrival at Adelaide airport.
Senator Antic refused to publicly disclose his vaccination status, blaming his detention on “the bureaucratic overlords” at SA Health.
At the weekend, following Mr Hawke’s decision but prior to the court challenge, Senator Antic appeared on Serbian television to defend Mr Djokovic and condemn his own government’s “regrettable” decision to deport him.
“I understand that this has been done on the grounds of the public interest. I don’t know what that means,” he said. “But it is curious in the sense that I don’t believe Mr Djokovic poses any threat to the Australian people [or] to the other players in the tournament.”
Barnaby Joyce: ‘We’ve got anti-vaxxer MPs, but what can you do?’
Source: Philippines Alive
