“He is a visible reminder of vaccine failure” Former UN under-secretary spills the beans on Novak Djokovic’s forced deportation from a ‘totalitarian’ Australia
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Novak Djokovic, Ramesh Thakur
Novak Djokovic, the 35-year-old Serbian recently won his 21st Grand Slam title after beating Australian Nick Kyrgios at the 2022 Wimbledon finals, the title victory was Djokovic’s fourth Wimbledon title in a row and his seventh overall. The Serbian has been around a lot of controversies due to his Covid-19 vaccination status which has caused him to miss out on potential Grand Slam titles and many tournaments.
Djokovic’s name was also included in the entry list of the US Open among many others, despite the unclear situation of whether or not he will be playing in the tournament or not, as far as the rules of the US government go, the Serbian will not be allowed to participate in the US Open unless he gets vaccinated or unless an exemption is provided.
“The government was terrified,” former UN under-secretary gives his take on Novak Djokovic’s deportation from Australia
With the controversies around Djokovic’s vaccination status, former UN under-secretary, Ramesh Thakur shared his opinion on the Serbian’s deportation from Australia which didn’t let him participate in the Australian Open, and how the same thing is eventually going to happen at the US Open.
Talking about the Serbian’s deportation from the Australian Open, Ramesh Thakur said, ” The claim that ‘No-vax’ Djokovic poses a threat to others’ health is risible. Among the best tennis players of all time, one of the greatest contemporary athletes across all sporting codes, and also possibly the healthiest human being on the planet who is obsessive-compulsive about his fitness, Djokovic was unable to play in the Australian Open because he refused to take a Covid vaccine.”
Thakur continued by saying “Djokovic had to be kept out of Australia not because he could infect other people, but because he is a visible reminder of vaccine failure. The government was terrified that a twice-infected but unvaccinated Djokovic, flaunting his athletic prowess on the pitch for a record 21st Major triumph, and could end the constant escalation of COVID terror.”
The former UN under-secretary wrote a forum talking about Djokovic’s situation even mentioning that he hopes that the situation will be different for the Serbian come US Open but is certainly not hopeful of it. He wrote, “This is why I would like to see Americans reject a repeat of the fiasco for the US Open but am not holding my breath. The capacity of authorities and governments to stubbornly – even cussedly – ignore facts, data, and evidence throughout the pandemic has been awe-inspiring.”
“It was totalitarian”: Ramesh Thakur on Australia’s behaviour towards Novak Djokovic
Thakur, a former United Nations Assistant Secretary-General, is an emeritus professor in the Crawford School of Public Policy at The Australian National University and was critical of his country’s behaviour towards the tennis great during the entire fiasco in January.
“The international humiliation inflicted so publicly on Djokovic in pursuit of vaccine apartheid was morally corrupt. It lacked both scientific justification and hard data in support. It indulged a government’s every illiberal instinct to control information and bully people into compliance. Djokovic’s deportation was petty, vindictive and an example of medical tyranny.
“It undermined Australians’ self-identity as free-spirited larrikins, instead validating the late Clive James’s quip: “The problem with Australians is not that so many of them are descended from convicts, but that so many of them are descended from prison officers.” More than authoritarian, it was totalitarian.
“In that it injected the state into the body of an individual in total repudiation of the principles of informed consent and “My body, my choice.” To the extent that the policy was enforced in my name as a citizen, I remain regretful, embarrassed and ashamed,” added Thakur further in his article.
Also read: “This is one way out” Andrey Rublev ready to change nationality after the ban by Wimbledon
Also read: Serena Williams signs up for 2022 Cincinnati Open, builds up hopes for a possible US Open appearance
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