Denmark's Christiania, a refuge for hippies and artists for more than 50 years, says it wants to shut down its notorious "Pusher Street" drug market after another fatal shooting.
"The Christiania community has decided that 'Pusher Street' should be closed," the community said in a statement published late yesterday.
However, the autonomous "freetown" community admitted that it has "neither the resources nor the power to close Pusher Street and keep it closed", and called on the Danish authorities to help find a solution.
In 1971, a band of hippies transformed an abandoned army barracks in central Copenhagen into their home.
They wanted to establish an alternative society, guided by the principles of peace and love, where decisions were made collectively and laws were not enforced.
In the enclave, soft drugs like marijuana and hash are officially illegal but tolerated, which has led to problems with drug trafficking and criminal gangs.
On Saturday, a 30-year-old man with ties to organised crime was shot dead in the 34-hectare enclave.
It was the fourth fatal shooting near Pusher Street linked to the drug trade since 2020.
Christiania's 900 or so inhabitants now want the state to step in and put an end to the illegal drug market and regulate it instead.
In early August, residents blocked access to the enclave for a day in the hope of "liberating Christiania from the gangs' tyranny".
Half a million tourists visit Christiania each year.
Speaking on Danish TV" television, Justice Minister Peter Hummelgaard said the government wanted to "make a sustainable change".
A working group made up of residents, police, Copenhagen city officials and the state are considering various solutions, he said.
