The Islamic community in Slovenia celebrates the 30th anniversary of its institutional independence, having established an independent governing body called Meshihat in December 1994.

Mufti Nevzet Porić says the community is doing well spiritually and financially, with the construction of the Ljubljana mosque in 2020 giving it the place in society it deserves.

Before attaining its institutional independence, the community was a part of a broader Islamic community of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia and Slovenia, and later a part of a Meshihat for Croatia and Slovenia.

The Meshihat in Slovenia brought the community its administrative independence, while the spiritual and symbolic ties to the Islamic community in Bosnia and Herzegovina have been preserved, with Porić noting that 90% of the community members are of Bosnian descent.

Muslims in Slovenia since WWI

The community traces the start of its institutional organisation back to 24 October 1917, when a mosque was due to open in Log pod Mangartom, a small Alpine village in northwestern Slovenia, where many Bosnian soldiers fought during the First World War. The mosque did not in fact open.

Muslims have lived in Slovenia since the First World War, and after Slovenia gained independence and became home to many refugees from the former Yugoslavia, it was only logical that the community decided to become independent, Porić says.

At first it was organised in committees in several towns around the country that the Meshihat brought under one roof. At the moment, the community is organised in 18 towns, employing 22 imams and six mualimas, female religion teachers, Porić told the Slovenian Press Agency.

Some 3,200 children attend religious classes, which are conducted in Slovenian for children between first and third grades. These are mostly fourth-generation children, born in Slovenia, who understand Slovenian better than any other language and consider Slovenia their homeland.

The community supports itself with contributions from 8,000 families and does not have to rely on donations, according to Porić. It is, however, counting on support from abroad for some infrastructure projects.

Mosque the heart of community

The Ljubljana mosque has made the community visible. The mosque draws many non-Muslim visitors as well, the mufti says. It attracted 3,600 visitors last year. "The mosque has changed the entire image of the Islamic community, which makes us very proud."

In the future, the community would like to start publishing its own books, including a Slovenian translation of the Quran, as none of the existing translations were made under the auspices of the community.

Porić points to several issues they would like to have tackled, among them spiritual care in the military and in prisons, pork-free meals in schools and kindergartens, and the status of imams without Slovenian citizenship whose social contributions are not covered by the state like they are for those who are Slovenian citizens.

Nevertheless, he says that cooperation with the state is good and issues are addressed in dialogue. They also have excellent cooperation with other religious communities, and work closely with Islamic communities in other countries in Europe and the Middle East.

Anniversary ceremony

The community marked the anniversary with a high-profile ceremony in Ljubljana on 17 October featuring a number of senior guests from Slovenia and abroad, with keynotes delivered by Porić, President Nataša Pirc Musar and the Grand Mufti of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Husein Kavazović.

While condemnation of the war and the suffering of Palestinians was one of the recurring themes, the ceremony also heard about the successful development of the community in Slovenia and its contribution to multicultural dialogue.

"Muslims are not only members of a religious community, they are important creators of intercultural dialogue and help shape an open and inclusive society with a responsibility for a shared future," President Pirc Musar said.

Grand Mufti Kavazović noted that the establishment of the Meshihat coincided with the arrival of Bosnian refugees to Slovenia and said they would never forget that Slovenia provided a haven for them. He also thanked Slovenia for its clear position on the situation in Gaza.