Squatting in Slovenia is the occupation of derelict buildings or unused land without the permission of the owner. Housing was illegally built from the 1960s onwards and

informal settlements Informal housing or informal settlement can include any form of housing, shelter, or settlement (or lack thereof) which is illegal, falls outside of government control or regulation, or is not afforded protection by the state. As such, the inform ...

have been set up by Romani people or poor immigrants. In the capital

Ljubljana Ljubljana (also known by other historical names) is the capital and largest city of Slovenia. It is the country's cultural, educational, economic, political and administrative center. During antiquity, a Roman city called Emona stood in the ar ...

, there is the autonomous zone of

Metelkova Metelkova (full name in sl, Avtonomni kulturni center Metelkova mesto, "Metelkova City Autonomous Cultural Centre", referred to by the acronym AKC) is an autonomous social and cultural centre in the city centre of Ljubljana, Slovenia's capital ci ...

and the Rog self-managed social centre was evicted in early 2021.

History

As with other cities in

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...

squatting Squatting is the action of occupying an abandoned or unoccupied area of land or a building, usually residential, that the squatter does not own, rent or otherwise have lawful permission to use. The United Nations estimated in 2003 that there ...

was present in the main city

from the 1960s onwards. By the early 1970s, half of all private construction was illegal and this resulted in the 1972 Black Housing Law which attempted to regulate squatter housing. A report stated there were 2,484 illegal properties in the city. The squatters were not from the poorest sector of society and most had secure employment. Reasons for squatting at that time included bad governance and the lack of affordable housing. The lengthy bureaucratic process to gain title to land was also cited as a factor, as well as the lack of punishment. Squatters might be sentenced to a fine and a maximum of thirty days in prison, often reduced on appeal. A total of 15,000 illegally constructed buildings across the country were identified in 1985. After independence, squatting did not become a widespread phenomenon in

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...

, although it is a tactic used by poor immigrants and

Romani people The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have diaspora populations located worldwide, with sig ...

who set up

. There are also activist projects such as AC Molotov, Rog and

Rog Ljubljana

Rog is a former bicycle factory which was occupied by artists in 2006. It became a self-managed social centre where political and cultural events were organised. It was evicted in 2021 by the city council, which plans to demolish the site and build a contemporary arts centre and a tram depot for Ljubljana tram revival. Twelve people resisting the eviction were arrested.

Autonomous cultural center Metelkova Mesto

was occupied in 1993 by activists inspired by the Dutch squatters movement. It has developed into an autonomous zone, where activists live and work and there are different spaces for political and cultural events. Punks played a strong role in the beginning of the project then their influence waned. There is now a hostel and Metelkova has become a tourist attraction for the city. In 2015, the mayor of Ljubljana Zoran Janković commented "Metelkova is a centre of urban culture".

References

{{Authority control

Society of Slovenia