The trouble with Ireland’s balaclava ban

Balaclavas were once the preserve of bank robbers and members of the IRA, but this week they were worn by thugs who clashed with police. During riots across England, protestors concealed their faces as they threw projectiles and smashed up shops. Balaclavas were also worn during anti-immigration protests against a proposed asylum site in Coolock, Dublin, last month. The sight of criminals wearing face coverings is a terrifying one – and Ireland has responded with a proposal to ban balaclavas at protests. It’s a shame it took so long.

Ireland’s embattled justice minister, Helen McEntee, is weighing up draft legislation which ‘intends to introduce a ban on face coverings, including balaclavas, at protests in circumstances where the wearing of a mask is intended to intimidate.’ On the face of it, that seems like an eminently sensible plan. Whether it has been the truly shocking scenes of the chaos across England and Belfast, or the violent disorder outside the planned asylum shelter in the Dublin suburb of Coolock, the worst behaved people are usually the ones covering their faces.