In the face of allegations of censorship, the cathaoirleach of South Dublin County Council last night defended the removal of two photographs and two placards from an exhibition of photographs about the anti-drugs movement.
Mr Eamon Walsh, a former Labour TD for the area, said he and the county manager, Mr Frank Kavanagh, decided to take down the photographs because they were insulting to gardai. The Garda Choir was due to sing at the opening of the exhibition.
"A number of pictures struck me as very political," Mr Walsh said. "The gardai should be open to criticism, but not on a night like this. The debate is not for this evening."
One of the pictures in the community exhibition, Drug Free Zone by award-winning photojournalist Derek Spiers, depicted three gardai standing outside the house of a member of the Dunne family, notorious Dublin drug-dealers in 1987.
A poster on the wall beside the gardai read: "The pusher Dunnes are scum." The second picture, taken by a community photographer, Jim Berkeley, featured a banner carried in a recent anti-drugs march saying, "End Garda harassment".
Two quotations on placards were also removed, according to a community activist, Mr Peter Smyth. "It's obvious that the police are not with us. They're against us," was one attributed to a community worker, Mr Mick Rafferty. The second was a statement attributed to an anonymous Special Branch garda saying, "We're the law in this town. Nobody else."
Mr Smyth, secretary of Killinarden Community Council and a member of the Coalition of Communities Against Drugs, said the items were taken off the walls of the council offices in Tallaght last week.
At the opening of the exhibition Mr Smyth said Mr Walsh accused him of acting on orders from his "ardfheis" by publicising the removal of the pictures.
Mr Smyth said he was not aware of any approach by the gardai to the council to have the items removed. "We call upon them to rehang the work they have removed from the exhibition and allow people make up their own minds as to the validity or otherwise of the work."
Mr Spiers said he was appalled at the removal of his photograph. "The picture is not supposed to be pointing the finger at the guards at all. It's about the community response to the Dunnes era. The whole business of putting this exhibition together has an integrity that should be respected."
