No. 1 tennis player Novak Djokovic's detention in Australia over alleged failure to meet pandemic entry requirements has fuelled anger and charges of racism in homeland Serbia
Several hundred people gathered outside Serbian parliament in a show of support for Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic as he battles the Australian legal system in an attempt to be allowed to stay in the country and compete in the Australian Open later in January.
"Thank you to people around the world for your continuous support. I can feel it and it is greatly appreciated," the 34-year-old Djokovic, who is in a detention facility in Melbourne awaiting an appeal, said on Instagram."It's a shame what is going on," said Dusan Stojic, a 67-year-old pensioner, who shed tears during a demonstration in Belgrade.
"What is not fair play is the political witch hunt by everybody including the Australian prime minister pretending that the rules apply to all," Aleksandar Vucic told the media. "A strong victim narrative fits into the nationalist view growing in strength in Serbia of a Western world that is inherently anti-Western," he added.