THE GOVERNMENT HAS approved legislation that will ban the wearing of balaclavas at protests.

The amendment to the Criminal Justice (Public Order) Act 1994 gives power to Gardaí to direct people wearing such face coverings in public “for the purpose of intimidating others or concealing the person’s identity in order to evade justice” to remove them.

It comes in the wake of violent protests and disorder targeting buildings selected as accommodation centres for asylum seekers in recent months, following the Dublin riots last November. 

Cabinet heard that some protesters are covering their faces in “an obvious effort to alarm and intimidate individuals targeted by, or present at, a protest”.

It heard that the presence of unknown individuals who are deliberately hiding their identities can create an extremely intimidating environment which can cause fear and distress for those present, particularly in protest situations. 

There is currently no clear power for Gardaí to direct a person to take a face covering off.

The amendment now provides a power for the force to require a person to remove a face covering “in circumstances where a public order offence, such as public intoxication, disorderly conduct or threatening or abusive behaviour, has arisen, or a person is loitering in a manner giving rise to concerns for the safety of people or property, and the member believes the face covering is being worn to intimidate others or to conceal the person’s identity to frustrate a Garda investigation”.

Cabinet heard that while people’s right to protest must be respected, it is subject to the rights of others to be safe and to go about their daily lives free from threats and intimidation, or threats to public order.

The Department of Justice said this Bill is a priority for Justice Minister Helen McEntee and is one of a suite of measures being introduced “to further empower Gardaí in public order incidents”, which includes the introduction of body-worn cameras.

Speaking earlier this year, McEntee said attacking a member of the gardaí or any other individual while wearing a balaclava at a protest is clearly a person not there to engage in a meaningful conversation.

“We need to stop this before this behaviour escalates and that’s why we need to ban this outright and make sure that these behaviors aren’t allowed in the first instance,” she said.