Organisers refuse to give details of this year's Reclaim the Streetsparty because of last year's violence, writes Kitty Holland.
The organisers of next month's Reclaim The Streets event in Dublin have said they will not be liaising with gardaí.
Last year's event, in which approximately 400 people took part, resulted in street disturbances, Garda clashes with demonstrators, 24 arrests and accusations of Garda brutality.
Seven gardaí were charged in relation to assault allegations, following the disturbances, and their cases are due to be heard in June.
Mr James McDonald of the Reclaim the Streets campaign said he could not give details about this year's "street party" on May 5th as it was a "surprise".
"All I can say at this stage is that it's happening at 2 o'clock on Monday the 5th outside the GPO. There'll be a bit of music, a bit of dancing. We'll probably sit down somewhere and enjoy ourselves, relax. It depends on the weather and the mood. You never know what we might do."
He said no route had been decided upon.
One of the factors in the trouble at last year's protest was said to be the lack of information or forewarning gardaí had about the event.
Although it began peacefully at the GPO at 2 p.m. and moved off from there in a relatively disorganised fashion up O'Connell Street and on to Burgh Quay, trouble followed.
Traffic was badly disrupted before the group moved on to Dame Street where the main clashes with gardaí occurred. About 250 of the original 400 people remained in Dame Street during the confrontation. Numerous gardaí were not wearing their identification badges.
Asked whether the organisers would notify the Garda about this year's events, Mr McDonald said: "No, we aren't and no we haven't. Why should we? This is our street party."
He said Reclaim the Streets protesters were a peaceful group while the gardaí were "big lads from Tullamore".
A spokeswoman for the Garda last night said anyone planning a protest or procession on the streets was obliged to notify the Garda in advance under the provisions of the Public Order Act.
"That's to ensure there is the necessary manpower in place on the day and to make other arrangements, such as traffic diversions," she said.
A spokesman for Pearse Street Garda station confirmed they had not been given formal notification about the "street party" but said they were aware of it.
Reclaim the Streets is a loose grouping of people with varying agendas, including a desire to see fewer cars on the streets, anti-globalisation and environmentalism.
A press release for next month's event says it will "take back a section of Dublin's streets for the people of this city and will seek to highlight the link between our cars and consumption and the need for oil and oil wars".
Mr McDonald said he had no idea how many people would attend.
"We've sent out the invitations to the party and we'll have to just see how many show up - anything from 10 to 1,000, I suppose."