Luník IX is a borough in the city of Košice

Košice

Košice is a city in eastern Slovakia. It is situated on the river Hornád at the eastern reaches of the Slovak Ore Mountains, near the border with Hungary...

, Slovakia

Slovakia

The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...

, in the Košice II

Košice II

Košice II is a district in the Košice Region of eastern Slovakia, in the city of Košice. It is bordered by the Košice I, Košice IV and Košice-okolie districts. Until 1918, the district was part of the Hungarian county of Abaúj-Torna.-City parts:* Lorinčík...

 district. It is located in the western-central part of the city, surrounded by the boroughs of Pereš

Peres

Peres is a Portuguese and Galician surname. Originally a patronymic, meaning Son of Pedro or Son of Pero , it has another version: Pires...

, Myslava, Barca

Košice-Barca

Barca is a city part of Košice, Slovakia.It was originally a village in its own right. The first written record about Barca dates back to 1215...

, Juh

Košice-Juh

Košice-Juh is part of the city of Košice, Slovakia. It is located in the southern area of the town.The oldest building there is the Holy Spirit Church, erected in 1733.-Statistics:* Area: 10.3 km²* Population: 23,561...

 and Západ.

Characteristics

The borough houses the largest Roma community in Slovakia

Slovakia

The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...

. Although originally built for 2,500 inhabitants, it is estimated that the population is now three times larger. The living standards are low, with services such as gas, water and electricity cut off, as the majority of inhabitants are not paying rent or utilities fees.

Health standards are low and diseases such as hepatitis, head lice, diarrhoea, scabies or meningitis are common. Unemployment in the borough reaches almost 100 percent. The borough has one elementary school and a kindergarten.

History

The borough was originally built as a neighbourhood for army, police officers and Roma (called "neighbourhood of ABC type"). However, a Roma village close to the borough was demolished in 1979 and the Roma were moved into Luník IX; in addition, there was a landfill

Landfill

A landfill site , is a site for the disposal of waste materials by burial and is the oldest form of waste treatment...

nearby. As early as in the 1980s the Roma were making up half of the population, which was around 2,000. Over time, the non-Roma population gradually moved away, with the Roma taking flats after them, and the borough turned into a Roma ghetto.

In 1995, the city council of Košice created a conception for the living conditions of dodgers, maladjusted and people from illegally occupied flats around Košice. They were to be moved into Luník IX, with “non-problematic” families being gradually moved out of it, if they would request. The realization of this plan is on-going.