ZAGREB, Sept 29 (Hina) - Members of Parliament Zeljka Antunovic (Social Democratic Party, SDP), Juraj Biscan (Croatian Peasants' Party, HSS) and Vilim Herman (Croatian Social Liberal Party, HSLS), protested Wednesday because Josip
Kokic, the initiator of the action to pronounce November 18 Vukovar Remembrance Day, was prevented from attending a news conference as a guest at the Croatian National Parliament. "By-passing laws, all regulations and rules, a citizen was prevented from entering, in this case, Kokic," Antunovic said at the conference which they, along with Kokic, held in front of the Parliament building. Kokic explained that the motive and goal of the conference was his initiative started at the beginning of the year, to pronounce November 18 Vukovar Remembrance Day. On that day in 1991, the three-day siege of the eastern Croatian town of Vukovar ended with the former Yugoslav People's Army troops enter
ZAGREB, Sept 29 (Hina) - Members of Parliament Zeljka Antunovic
(Social Democratic Party, SDP), Juraj Biscan (Croatian Peasants'
Party, HSS) and Vilim Herman (Croatian Social Liberal Party, HSLS),
protested Wednesday because Josip Kokic, the initiator of the
action to pronounce November 18 Vukovar Remembrance Day, was
prevented from attending a news conference as a guest at the
Croatian National Parliament.
"By-passing laws, all regulations and rules, a citizen was
prevented from entering, in this case, Kokic," Antunovic said at
the conference which they, along with Kokic, held in front of the
Parliament building.
Kokic explained that the motive and goal of the conference was his
initiative started at the beginning of the year, to pronounce
November 18 Vukovar Remembrance Day.
On that day in 1991, the three-day siege of the eastern Croatian
town of Vukovar ended with the former Yugoslav People's Army troops
entering the town after which followed mass killings of civilians
and the wounded, as well as the deportation of non-Serb residents.
Kokic told reporters that MPs of the ruling Croatian Democratic
Union (HDZ), Jadranka Kosor and Vladimir Seks had forwarded the
draft decision to Parliament procedure.
"I am exceptionally happy because a citizen's initiative achieved
success," Kokic said.
He recalled that because of his initiative, which was signed by 25
MPs and numerous dignitaries, he had been on a hunger strike from
March 18 to 28 at Vukovar's Danube hotel.
He terminated the strike after deputy president of the Parliament
Jadranka Kosor and representatives of Homeland War associations
supported the initiative.
MPs and dignitaries who endorsed Kokic's initiative wished to
contribute to the commemoration to the defenders of Vukovar without
expecting any gain and without politics, Antunovic said.
"However, we kept encountering closed doors the entire time. The
initiative will get to the Parliamentary benches during the
election time as a motion of the HDZ," she said, adding that this was
just another case of a good initiative of citizens and parties being
given no chance for procedure "until they are misused by the HDZ".
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