Following the gathering of an anti-immigration group of men outside Minister Roderic O’Gorman’s home on Thursday, April 18, a garda representative has said there is “no clear guidance” on how to deal with incidents of this nature.

Gardaí were called to the home of Minister Roderic O’Gorman on Thursday evening after a group of masked men hung banners containing anti-immigration slogans outside the politician’s home.

Some signs demanded O’Gorman “close the borders,” while another referenced a “plantation,” a term used by white nationalists who claim countries with predominantly white European populations are under threat from immigration.

Following Thursday’s incident at O’Gorman’s home, President of the Garda Representative Association (GRA) Brendan O’Connor admitted that these aggressive-style so-called ‘protests’ and confrontational behaviours have been “arising on a more regular basis”.

When asked why no arrests were made on Thursday, O’Connor said there is currently “no clear guidance of what exact actions (gardaí) should engage in and what legislative provisions they should rely on in those circumstances”.

While no clear guidelines are currently in place, Sunday World reported that a directive was issued to gardaí detailing what could be considered a criminal offence at a demonstration at someone’s home.

According to the directive, agitators hanging signs “may constitute a form of harassment and/or threatening and abusive conduct”. It also reportedly outlined that “wearing of balaclavas in particular, have potentially sinister overtures in Ireland”.

The incident has been widely condemned, with Taoiseach Simon Harris saying he is “frustrated” and “very concerned” about politician’s homes being targeted.

He described the event as an “absolutely horrific situation”, adding: “This is something that has been festering for a number of years – it has happened in my house, it’s happened at the home of the leader of Sinn Féin, it’s happened to (Solidarity-People Before Profit TD) Paul Murphy’s house, it’s happened to the Government TDs.”

Speaking on RTÉ Radio One’s Today with Claire Byrne, the Taoiseach continued: “I want to have a very clear answer right now as the leader of the Government – do we need new laws? And if we do, let’s get on with it.”

Similarly, Social Democrats leader Holly Cairns stressed that “the intimidation and harassment of a public representative by a group of masked men is an affront to democracy and cannot go unchallenged. What we are witnessing is not protest. It is an attack on democratic values and a challenge to the rule of law.”

“The harassment of a public representative by a group of masked men is an affront to democracy and cannot go unchallenged,” says @HollyCairnsTD

“What we are witnessing is not protest.

“This intimidation cannot be allowed to continue with impunity.”https://t.co/weApbJJMSS

— Social Democrats (@SocDems) April 19, 2024

The incident was also condemned by the National LGBT Federation (NXF), with Board Director Adam Long saying: “This kind of harassment is reprehensible and entirely unacceptable and can in no way be described as legitimate protest.

“Serious consideration must be given to strengthening the law in this area if that is what is required to prevent a reoccurrence of such shameful scenes,” Mr Long added, referring to proposed legislation from Fianna Fáil Senator Malcolm Byrne, which would make it an offence to target an individual’s home as part of a protest.

In a statement on Friday evening, O’Gorman thanked An Garda Síochána for their assistance and warned that threats and intimidation towards elected officials could undermine Irish democracy.

He said: “Ireland has a strong democratic tradition, where public representatives are accessible and accountable to the public. We debate and sometimes disagree, but do so in a way that is fundamentally respectful. I know that is valued by people across this country, and it is valued by politicians too.

O’Gorman added: “Threats and intimidation towards publicly elected representatives and those seeking election will undermine those essential qualities of Irish democracy. If we were to lose those, we would lose something very dear, and not easily recovered.”