ZAGREB, Nov 11, 2020- Leader of the Homeland Movement, Miroslav Skoro, announced on Wednesday in a video message a new interpellation, this time regarding the club in Slovenska Street in Zagreb.

Skoro posted a video message on Facebook since he has been in isolation since the end of October when he said he was positive for coronavirus.

He commented on the parliament's rejection of the Homeland Movement's interpellation on the government's work regarding the Krs-Padjene wind park, saying that the response was silly.

The Homeland Movement leader also announced a new interpellation regarding events that took place in the club in Slovenska Street, owned by former JANAF oil pipeline operator CEO Dragan Kovacevic, who is a suspect in the JANAF case.

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ZAGREB, Oct 28, 2020  - Homeland Movement leader and member of Parliament Miroslav Skoro tests positive for COVID-19, he said in a Facebook post on Wednesday.

"I have developed mild symptoms. I am following doctor's orders and expect a speedy recovery," Skoro said.

He said he has been in self-isolation since October 16 when he attended a meeting of the parliamentary Committee on Home Affairs and National Security and was in contact with Committee member Franko Vidovic (Social Democratic Party) who later turned out to be infected. "In the meantime, this virus has been confirmed in me too," Skoro wrote.

After the Committee meeting, two SDP Committee members and four clerks have been ordered to self-isolate. The meeting was also attended by senior officials from the State Attorney's Office, the Security and Intelligence Agency (SOA) and the police.

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ZAGREB, Sept 23, 2020 - MP Karolina Vidovic Kristo of the rightwing Homeland Movement was asked to leave the Parliament chamber on Wednesday after refusing to wear a face mask during the session.

"Please put your mask on or I will have to suspend you from the discussion," Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandrokovic told Vidovic Kristo after she demanded that the national coronavirus response team lift the obligation for children to wear masks in school.

Jandrokovic then called a break and suspended the Homeland Movement MP for the day because she refused to wear a face mask.

Showing 1,033 letters from concerned parents demanding that the national coronavirus response team be disbanded, Vidovic Kristo called for an immediate end to what she said were questionable, excessive and unnecessary restrictions on children's freedom.

"We demand that the obligation for children to wear face masks be revoked immediately," the MP said, citing scientific research showing that wearing masks did not help in reducing the risk of infection with the coronavirus, but could cause health and mental problems in children.

She also criticised the excessive use of hand sanitisers and unnecessary tests for people showing no symptoms, saying that Croatia had wasted HRK 200 million on that.

Branko Bacic, the chairman of the parliamentary group of the ruling Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ), described Vidovic Kristo's speech as scandalous, stressing that the national response team's decisions had been upheld by the Constitutional Court.

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ZAGREB, Sept 2, 2020- Parliamentary opposition parties on Wednesday strongly criticized the Zagreb reconstruction bill and buildings' environs damaged by a March 22 earthquake. 

"The Zagreb reconstruction bill lacks ambition and cements the existing situation. It restores the situation that existed before the earthquake and does not say what Zagreb should like 10 or 20 years from now," said Pedja Grbin of the Social Democratic Party (SDP).

"The bill is impracticable. It contains a lot of disputable things," said Anka Mrak Taritas of the Civic Liberal Alliance (GLAS), while Bridge's Marija Selak Raspudic said that it "creates an atmosphere of legal uncertainty" and "bypasses the existing regulations."

Homeland Movement leader Miroslav Skoro raised the question of funding, saying that neither the government nor the City of Zagreb had enough money for the reconstruction.

On the other hand, Ivan Domagoj Milosevic of the ruling Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) said that the bill was based on three key pillars: political inclusion, the government adopted more than 25 opposition proposals, transparency, and solidarity.

Some of the MPs protested over the epidemiological measures that were unanimously decided by the Parliament Presidency on Tuesday, under which wearing face masks are mandatory and that not more than 41 MPs can be present in the chamber at the same time.

"I would like to thank the Presidency for decimating the MPs and shortening the duration of speeches," Selak Raspudic said ironically.

Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandrokovic repeated that the Presidency's decision was unanimous and in line with the Rules of Procedure and was meant to ensure the normal functioning of Parliament and prevent the spread of the coronavirus infection.

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ZAGREB, Aug 22, 2020 - The Homeland Movement party said in a statement on Saturday that it supports scientific research of and obligatory education about the crimes of 20th century totalitarian and authoritarian regimes.

The opposition party issued the statement on the occasion of the European day of remembrance for victims of all totalitarian and authoritarian regimes, August 23, which, it said, is observed in a number of EU countries.

As stressed in the European Parliament resolution of 19 September 2019 on the importance of remembrance for the future of Europe, Europe's tragic past should continue to serve as moral and political inspiration to deal with the challenges of the present.

Communism and Fascism great evils of 20th century

"The totalitarian ideologies Communism and Fascism were a great evil of the 20th century. There is still no sufficient knowledge of the extent of crimes, notably of Yugoslav Communism, in Croatia because mass graves with the remains of our people continue to be discovered. Nobody has answered for those crimes and that is why researchers who investigate Communist crimes should be fully supported in further research," the party said.

"Unfortunately, it took too long for a Zagreb square bearing the name of the Communist dictator to be renamed, which was a civilisational disgrace," the party said.

Nazis and Communists were allies until the German invasion of the Soviet Union, while Communists in Croatia were against Western forces from the start of World War II and they consistently denied the Croat people the right to an independent state until the fall of Communism in the Soviet Union, the party said.

It called for marking the European day of remembrance for victims of all totalitarian and authoritarian regimes during the school year, just as some EU member states mark the International Holocaust Remembrance Day during the school year.

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ZAGREB, Aug 4, 2020 - The opposition Homeland Movement party, led by Miroslav Skoro, said on Tuesday that its delegation, during a visit to Knin on August 5 for the commemoration of the 25th anniversary of Operation Storm, would not attend the official ceremony.

The party said one of the reasons why it would not attend the official ceremony was the fact that President Zoran Milanovic does not want units of the wartime Croatian Defence Force (HOS) to be part of the official protocol, and that one of Homeland Movement members of parliament was HOS general Ante Prkacin, who, it said, would be insulted by the party's attendance at the ceremony.

The Homeland Movement said it wanted to "celebrate the victory with the people" while the area where the official ceremony would be taking place would be cordoned off.

The party also said that statements by the HDZ and its coalition partner the Independent Democratic Serb Party (SDSS) ahead of the 25th anniversary of Operation Storm put emphasis on individual negative experiences of representatives of one part of the Serb minority, instead of on those who took part in the 1995 military operation.

"Instead of celebrating the magnificent victory, the 25th anniversary of Operation Storm has turned into a political show by Plenkovic and Milanovic aimed at promoting the Croat-Serb coalition that is based on trade-offs. The Homeland Movement refuses to give legitimacy to what should have been a celebration of the Croatian victory and has been turned into a commemoration for the Serb victims. We respect all victims, but on the 25th anniversary of Operation Storm, guilt cannot be equated and the aggressor cannot be turned into the victim," the party said.

ZAGREB, July 27, 2020 - Homeland Movement MP Milan Vrkljan said on Monday the current COVID-19 response team should be dissolved.

"We agree with the president of the republic that it's a para-body, a body outside the constitution and the law and that it was established in the interest of a very small, narrow group of people covered by party affiliation," he told press.

As for the establishment of a new team, Vrkljan said the parliamentary health committee should discuss the issue and propose to the government how a new team should be established.

He said the team should be relieved of any politics as soon as possible and be left up to experts, and that everyone in Croatia who could and should say something should be involved in its work. "That's definitely not just doctors who are members of the HDZ."

Grmoja: Parliament should examine COVID-19 response team's activity

MP Nikola Grmoja of the Bridge party said parliament should "definitely" examine the activity of the team which had lost all credibility.

He said the case of HSLS MP Dario Hrebak showed that "if you are close enough to those in power, you don't have to self-isolate if you are needed for the parliamentary majority."

Grmoja said the team was compromised by the fact that its key members were candidates in the recent parliamentary election, and that Bridge agreed with President Zoran Milanovic's assessment of the team.

"Bridge was the first not to give the team those powers," he said, adding that the current team might be dissolved.

"It's possible, but that would require the goodwill and the political will of the prime minister to include in the team's work people who will be proposed by all parliamentary parties," Grmoja said.

He added, however, that those in power would refuse "because the team was their key lever in the election campaign and the election victory and they will keep it that way, but they will also bear the consequences."

President Zoran Milanovic said on Sunday that the national COVID-19 response team was not legally established and that it needed authority for the decisions it was making, and that parliament should play a key part in that.

"I warned the prime minister that people will sue the state because the decisions aren't legally founded. That team is a para-body. The Constitutional Court will have to decide on that."

ZAGREB, July 27, 2020 - The Homeland Movement parliamentary group asked from the government on Monday a detailed report on the HRK 100,000 from the state budget spent on the commemoration in Srb which it claims celebrates "the genocidal slaughter of Croats in Boricevac and neighbouring villages."

"At a time when budgetary revenues are low, when big companies relevant for the system are reducing salaries, when people are being sacked, when we don't know where the drop in the standard of living will stop, the Croatian government is financing a gathering which celebrates the genocidal slaughter of Croats in Boricevac and neighbouring villages, with HRK 100,000!" MP Katarina Vidovic Kresto told reporters.

She said it was unacceptable to allow a celebration of the slaughter of one's own people. "That's revolting and schizophrenic," she said, recalling the killing of the Ivezic family, 24 children, women, elderly and others.

She said the government financed the celebration with taxpayers' money and asked for a detailed report from Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic and Finance Minister Zdravko Maric. "The government is accountable to parliament. We demand a detailed report on the expenses."

The party's whip, Milan Vrkljan, said all of the Boricevac villagers were killed, that the village was burned down and all land records were destroyed.

(€1 = HRK 7.5)

ZAGREB, July 21, 2020 - Homeland Movement whip Milan Vrkljan said on Tuesday the party would nominate its president Miroslav Skoro as a deputy parliament speaker.

"The Homeland Movement will have... one deputy speaker, two committee chairs, two committee deputy chairs, one parliamentary group chair, and 13 seats on all parliamentary committees from the opposition quota," Vrkljan told the press.

Of the five deputy speakers, it is a usual practice that two come from the ranks of the Opposition.

He said the opposition was extremely fair at Monday's meeting and that they "managed to agree with the SDP, Bridge, the Sovereignists and We Can! simply, easily and with a lot of good intentions."

As for We Can! leader Tomislav Tomasevic's statement that this coalition could abstain from voting for Skoro as one of the deputy parliament speakers, Vrkljan called it "activist habits which some MPs brought from their campaigns."

He said all opposition parliamentary groups agreed yesterday to have joint candidates for deputy speakers, for all groups and committees.

"Based on that, the party which doesn't support a joint proposal will be excluded by all of us from the allotment of seats on parliamentary committees, but I believe they will find the strength in themselves and democratic customs to support anyone legitimately nominated in the Croatian parliament," said Vrkljan.

ZAGREB, July 3, 2020 - Homeland Movement leader Miroslav Skoro accused the HDZ and the SDP on Friday of agreeing about their interests, although they were supposed to be political opponents, for example, that it was not necessary to amend the election law or revoke their perks.

Speaking at the final campaign press conference, Skoro said he was not worried about the election results because he believed in a better tomorrow, but that he was worried about a deep rift in Croatian society given that 50% of eligible citizens did not wish to vote.

"We are offering this state the possibility to make a move with good far-reaching consequences. They are offering another move with bad consequences."

Skoro said he feared what would happen after Sunday's election because the epidemiological situation was not good. "The whole world is closing again, only we are opening and exposing ourselves in the interest of one man and two parties, Andrej Plenkovic, in the interest of the HDZ and the SDP."

Plenkovic and Bernardic can't be prime ministers

Asked if he was willing to sit down on Monday and talk about the next government, Skoro said the Homeland Movement was willing to talk with anyone who wished Croatia well. He added, however, that neither HDZ president Plenkovic nor SDP president Davor Bernardic could be a prime minister.

Skoro said he did not think a new election would be called because there were enough smart and wise people who would recognise the need to remove Plenkovic and Bernardic.