French Sports minister Amelie Oudea-Castera says Novak Djokovic’s political message about Kosovo was “not appropriate” and has warned the Serbian famous person he mustn’t repeat it.
Speaking on TV station France 2, Oudea-Castera stated French Open director Amelie Mauresmo spoke with Djokovic and his entourage to insist on the precept of “neutrality” on the sphere of play.
“When it comes to defending human rights and bringing people together around universal values, a sportsperson is free to do so,” she stated. But Oudea-Castera added that Djokovic’s message was “militant, very political” and “must not be repeated.”
Djokovic has drawn criticism from Kosovo’s tennis federation after providing his ideas on clashes in northern Kosovo between ethnic Serbs and police and NATO peacekeepers.
After a French Open first-round victory in Paris on Monday, Djokovic wrote in Serbian on the lens of a courtside TV digital camera: “Kosovo is the heart of Serbia. Stop the violence.”
Kosovo’s tennis federation stated Tuesday that Djokovic’s feedback have been “deplorable” as a result of he was stoking tensions between Serbia and Kosovo.
A former province of Serbia, Kosovo’s 2008 declaration of independence shouldn’t be acknowledged by Belgrade. Ethnic Albanians make up a lot of the inhabitants, however Kosovo has a restive Serb minority within the north of the nation bordering Serbia.
Djokovic, who has received 22 grand slam titles, was scheduled to play within the second spherical at Roland Garros on Wednesday.
Speaking to reporters in Serbian, Djokovic stated Monday that he thought what he wrote on the TV digital camera was “the least I could do. I feel responsibility as a public figure … as well as a son of a man who was born in Kosovo.”
Without mentioning Djokovic by title, French Open organisers indicated in a press release issued Tuesday that no guidelines had been damaged, saying: “Occasionally, discussions about international news events enter the realm of the tournament, which is understandable.”
Source: www.perthnow.com.au
