"PEOPLE around here have very little faith in the police. They just feel the Government has let them down. At this stage I think it's inevitable that you're going to get more vigilante activity."

Mark (not his real name) is a vigilante and resident of the Summerhill/Buckingham Street area of Dublin. Involved in ICON (Inner City Organisations Network), he has been a worker on the City-Wide Campaign Against Drugs for the past year.

He spoke yesterday morning, after the previous night's meeting of residents organised by ICON and the CWCAD. He says more residents want tougher action against pushers as they have little faith in Garda effectiveness.

"The Drug Squad has just 14 members, split up into three shifts. That's nowhere near enough to carry out surveillance on even one person. There had been more reaction from the pushers to the threat of vigilante retribution than to any threat of legal retribution, Mark said. "I've had a few round to me this morning now saying they were stopped dealing and asking were they safe in their flats."

He outlined what happens. "Generally there would be eight to 10 of us - all men yes, with baseball bats or whatever - and we'd go and threaten them and tell them that if they didn't stop dealing or get out we'd put them out. There's one was ordered out in Jude's Gardens and one's gone in Mountain View Court."

He would prefer to see exclusively peaceful methods used and says "the reaction of the last few days has sent a strong message to the pushers that the people aren't going to tolerate them".

He said: "The residents can't do it by themselves. If the gardai don't do more you are definitely likely to get more vigilante activity."

Mary, a neighbour who has lived in Summerhill for over 15 years, has dropped in. She tells how she has "seen them selling drugs to a 13-year-old girl. If I had a gun now I'd shoot them myself and I wouldn't blink an eyelid."