Carrying banners decrying the political elites, the protesters gathered in Kongresni trg square, the venue where in the morning a patriotic rally was organised by the right-leaning Assembly for the Republic attracting 9,000 according to police estimates.

Headed by a lorry-cum-stage featuring legendary punk rocker Jani Kovačič, they made their way to Slovenska street for a tour that ended in front of a fenced-off Parliament House, bringing traffic in the centre to a halt.

The protesters have been joined by a large group from Maribor, the city where the movement started in December with protests against the mayor, Franc Kangler, who has since resigned.

On the way to parliament, the protesters plastered "Our Property" banners on the central bank building, shouting: "We won't pay for your crisis" and "Thieves".

They carried banners with slogans such as "Nobody represents us", "We are neither left nor right", "What's a bank robbery compared to a bad bank" and "There comes a time when a patriot needs to defend their country".

The crowd settled in Trg Republike square in front of the parliament. Despite the turnout, police have reported no incidents so far.

Among those in the crowd was US Ambassador Joseph Mussomeli, who told the STA that he was there as an onlooker, not a protester, having already attended the morning rally of the Assembly for the Republic. "We try to be objective and balanced," he said.

The third in the series of the "All-Slovenian Uprising", it is the biggest so far, bringing out more people than the first two combined. The first one, on 21 December, saw some 5,000 participants; the second one, on 11 January, about 8,000, according to police estimates.