Djokovic’s line highlights the plight of Australian asylum seekers | Refugee Stories

As the rain lashes the outside of Novak Djokovic Prison in Melbourne, shouts of “free Novak” alternate with “free refugees” as fans stand alongside freedom fighters and vaccine protesters.

Vaccination against his tennis was was placed in the middle earlier this week, his visa revoked for failing to comply with the strict Australian pandemic.

Among a group of about 50 people who gathered on the second day of the protest on Friday, some showed signs of nine heroes of the Australian Open while others had anti-vaccination signs.

Another group, Grandmothers for Refugees, says that they are helping people who are in prison.

Armed with flags and chanting national anthems, some Serbs in the crowd celebrated Orthodox Christmas Day in parades.

It is unknown at this time what he will do after leaving the post.

The court is expected to hear its decision to cancel his visa ban on Monday.

Park Hotel

Just four kilometers (2.5 kilometers) from the city’s top hotels where most of the other players at the Australian Open are located, the Park Hotel, a five-story gray house with windows in the center of the city, is known as “another closed area”.

Inside the second room are about 30 men from several countries who have been transferred to 2020 medical prisons in Australian prisons located in the southern Pacific islands of Papua New Guinea and Nauru, now closed to relocation to Australia.

Detainees may not leave and no one is allowed to enter or leave except the staff.

The house was inscribed with the words “release them all” by refugee aides Thursday night, when two people were arrested as police tried to evacuate the area.

One prisoner carried a sign reading “I look for my freedom” on another window.

Signs are hung on the window of the Park Hotel [Sandra Sanders/Reuters]

The area came to prominence last year when a house fire forced refugees and refugees to evacuate, and worms are said to have been found in the food.

“We are in our room. There is no fresh air. We do not have any place to study. There is no gym here. It is very difficult, “said Hossein Latifi, a 32-year-old Iranian man who was arrested in Nauru in 2013.

For decades, Australia has imposed a ban on anyone arriving without a visa, and to prevent people from getting on a boat, it has set up a checkpoint in Nauru and on the island of Manus in PNG.

Manus was detained in 2016 after being deemed illegal, while Nauru’s capital is still open.

In response to protesters, the government in 2019 began allowing seriously ill refugees to be temporarily relocated to Australia for treatment.

Latifi was brought to Australia in 2020 and was detained elsewhere before being relocated to the Park Hotel four months ago. He said he did not know how long he would be there and where he would go.

“We are refugees, we are innocent people – we have not committed any crime. He just keeps me in custody here, “Latifi told Reuters by telephone from his room, as he filmed a crowd of about 100 people across the street asking Djokovic and his refugees to be released.

Protesters have staged demonstrations at the Park Hotel [Loren Elliott/Reuters]

Some of the group of asylum seekers have been staying at the hotel for almost two years, and several are complaining about the situation, including food insecurity.

“It is very low and we have been given worms and mold in our bread,” said Adnan Choopani, an Iranian who was arrested nine years ago at the age of 15.

The hotel is also being used to block travelers who have been tested for COVID-19.

Choopani and Latifi both wished Djokovic well, though Latifi said the tennis star is facing “a few days”, not nine years.

Choopani said he found strength in looking at how a new celebrity put him at the hotel.

“I do not want the people of Australia to be shut down without anyone,” Choopani said. Novak, you are not alone. You have so many supporters, we love you, we want to see you succeed … we wish you all the best and wish you freedom, just as we want ourselves. ”

Djokovic’s closure has sparked international attention, with the Serbian government seeking an explanation.

“Djokovic is not a terrorist, a terrorist or an immigrant, but he was treated in this way by Australian government officials which makes his fans and citizens of Serbia angry,” the foreign ministry said.

The president, the cabinet and foreign ministers have delivered a series of angry remarks about the country’s heroic actions.

In a threatening statement at a Belgrade rally, Srdjan Djokovic’s father told a crowd of his son that he had been harassed by “political witch hunts” and “corona fascism”.

Djina Djokovic’s mother told reporters at the rally: “He is being held as a prisoner. It is not fair. He is not a human being.”

The hotel is also being used to block travelers who have been tested for COVID-19 [Sandra Sanders/Reuters]

In Australia, Prime Minister Scott Morrison defended the return of Djokovic’s visa.

“Laws are rules and there are no special cases,” he said.

Many Australians, who have endured almost two years of bans and incarceration, were outraged when they heard that the player was not allowed to receive the vaccine.

The tennis players looked divided, but some surrounded Novak.

“Look, I believe I have to take action, I was vaccinated for others and for my mother’s health, but the way we are doing Novak’s things is bad, bad,” said Australian expert Nick Kyrgios.

“This is one of our biggest experts but at the end of the day, he is a man,” he said on TV.

Rafael Nadal, meanwhile, said he sympathized with Djokovic but added that Serb could play “without any problem” if he wanted to.

“I think if he had wanted to, he could have played here in Australia without a problem,” said Nadal.

“He has made his own decisions, and everyone has the right to make his own choices, but there are other consequences. Of course, I do not like the situation at all. In other words, I feel sorry for him. But at the same time, he has ‘grasped the essence of the situation very many months ago, and he is making his own decision.’