The Another Europe is Possible (AEIP) alliance, which is organising protests and carnival events to mark May Day and the accession of the new EU states tomorrow, will hold a public meeting tonight at Liberty Hall.
Among the speakers will be Ms Susan George, a debt campaigner, Mr Brendan Archbold of Mandate and Ms Aoife Ni Fhearall of the Irish Anti-War Movement. The event is due to begin at 7 p.m.
The alliance of trade unionists, anti-war activists, anti-capitalists, community campaigners and left-wing political parties is organising a march tomorrow. The event is expected to start at 12 noon at the Central Bank and will travel to Heuston Station for what the group describes as "a carnival of multiculturalism" at 2.30 p.m.
The group called on the government and the gardai to accept that the "massive security build up" for tomorrow is "unnecessary and a waste of taxpayers' money".
Mr Rory Hearne, convenor of Another Europe is Possible, said: "We will be marching...to oppose the policies of the EU leaders that are meeting in Farmleigh house.
"While, Blair and Berlusconi are being wined and dined, their troops are involved in the bloody and unjustified occupation of Iraq. We are calling on [the Taoiseach] Ahern to stop the use of Shannon by US troops and to publically oppose any EU army. May Day is workers' day and trade unionists and community campaigners fighting the sell off of their local authority estates will be joining in our march and carnival."
Mr Hearne said it had been made "explicitly clear" that all protests tomorrow will be peaceful and that "hype by the state and government has failed to intimidate the protesters.
Meanwhile, a lobby group seeking greater public scrutiny of EU policy on trade in services has said the new EU constitution is not necessary for enlargement and will be "bad for ordinary people throughout the EU".
Democracy and Public Services in Europe (DAPSE), which emerged out of last year's Irish Social Forum, said the "razzmattazz" surrounding enlargement is acting as a cover for "regressive changes being slipped through" in the new constitution".
"The new EU Constitution would make it easier for vital public services — like health and education — to be turned into commercial operations," said Mr Brendan Young of DAPSE.
"The European Commission has been pushing for parts of health and education services to be opened to international trade in the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS). So far they have not had much success because of the veto that member states have on trade in these services.
"The new constitution would remove this veto, making it more likely that big parts of these services would be turned into business operations."
"This will be bad for ordinary people in the older and newer countries of the EU, because service charges or restricted access are the likely outcomes."
DAPSE called on the Irish government to "make as much of a fuss about keeping the veto on trade in health and education services as they have made on keeping the veto on taxation".