Society, / By Sta

Kočevska Reka, 12 January - A bunker in the south of Slovenia which was used during the time of former Yugoslavia, will be turned into an underground museum, offering visitors a look into the shelter's significance for the country's independence.

The former Yugoslav authorities constructed the K-35 bunker in the town of Kočevski Rog as part of an underground bunker system, the main unit of which is located in the nearby town of Gotenica, said Kočevje Mayor Vladimir Prebilič.

The K-35 bunker was used to ensure communication support for the main unit, to which Slovenia's leading political and military figures of the time were to be evacuated in case of wars and nuclear attacks.

The municipality of Kočevje is to allocate EUR 100,000 to have the shelter upgraded into a museum, which will present its construction in the 1950s, the establishment of the Kočevski Rog military exclusion zone and its importance for Slovenia's independence. It is scheduled to be opened in June.

After Slovenia's independence in 1991, the Interior Ministry turned the main unit in Gotenica into a training centre, while the K-35 bunker was maintained by the Defence Ministry, which preserved it in its original state.

The bunker contains several rooms and about 500-metre long corridors, which were used by its staff. It could withstand nuclear attacks and allowed for a stay of about 100 days, Prebilič added.