Squatters from Copenhagen`s `free city` of Christiania launched a legal challenge Monday against the Danish government to court in a bid to save the 37-year-old hippy community from demolition.

Founded by hippies in September 1971 on an abandoned military barracks, the squatters argue they have the legal right to remain there. Christiania is home to some 1,000 hippies, artists, activists and misfits as well as to restaurants, cafes, shops and some unique-looking homes designed by residents.

The squatters` lawyer Knud Foldschack said his clients do not want Danish government policy to bring about the end of the community and to change their way of life.

Earlier this year, 300 local people clashed with police after they demolished a house that authorities said had been built illegally. The demonstrators used guerrilla tactics, harassing the police in the streets around Christiania and setting fire to rubbish bins, chairs and old refrigerators.

Politicians have been divided over the community, with some seeing it as an interesting social experiment, while others say it is merely a den of drugs and crime.

A popular tourist attraction, the area also has the dubious reputation of being the biggest drug market in Scandinavia valued at an estimated one billion Danish kroner (134 million euros, 169 milion dollars).

Residents lawyer Foldschack will have 12 days to present his arguments in court and convince judges that the squatters have a legal right to remain on the abandoned barracks. The verdict is expected in January next year.