Minister for Justice Helen McEntee has said she wants legislation in place as soon as possible to ban the wearing of masks and balaclavas during protests.
The concealment of identities is instilling fear and intimidation and is making the job of the gardaí more difficult, Ms McEntee said.
The proposal comes in response to a rise in violent protests over the past year where some attendees covered their faces with balaclavas and masks.
The minister said she is working closely with the Attorney General and the Garda Commissioner to draft legislation.
"My priority now is to make sure that the mechanics of this work," she said.
"So, I've been working closely with the Attorney General and the Garda Commissioner, so that this can be applied in the most efficient way possible for the gardaí," she added.
Ms McEntee said the "next steps would be to start the drafting" adding she hopes "to be able to do that as quickly as possible".
"But beyond that, I don't have a specific timeline," she added.
She reiterated that people have a right to protest, but she said, "no one should have a right to instil fear or to intimidate any other individual".
Ms McEntee said gardaí need to have all the powers required to protect public order while, at the same time, supporting the right to peaceful protest.
The minister said that the introduction of previous initiatives, such as body cameras, stronger incapacitant spray and more body armour, have all been done to help gardaí in their work.
The measures follow laws increasing the sentence for assaulting a member of An Garda Síochána from 12 years to life, increasing the penalty of conspiracy to murder to life and doubling the maximum sentence for assault causing harm.
Additional reporting Paul Cunningham
