THE Government relies on three pieces of legislation to combat racism: the 1989 Prohibition of Incitement to Hatred Act; the forthcoming Equal Status Bill; and the 1977 Employment Equality Act which is to be amended.

The Prohibition of Incitement to Hatred Act makes it illegal to stir up hatred against people in Ireland or abroad on the basis of their race, colour, nationality, religion or origin. This applies to all groups, including travellers, and to all material whether oral, written or published by any other means.

The Act was passed after it emerged that fascist groups were using Ireland to print and distribute material banned in other countries.

According to the group AntiFascist Action, the National Socialist Irish Workers Party was operating from Eugene Street, Dublin, as a mailing address for fascists abroad. That group has since disbanded.

In answer to a question from Ms Kathleen Lynch of Democratic Left last November, the Minister for Justice, Ms Owen, told the Dail that no prosecutions had been taken under the 1989 Act.

The Employment Equality Act will be amended in the coming weeks to make it illegal not to employ somebody because of colour or ethnic background. It will then be called the Employment Equality Bill 1996 and, once passed, should clear the way for the Equal Status Bill.

This will deal with the provision of goods and services, making it illegal for people such as landowners or publicans to refuse service on grounds of colour or ethnic background.

The Vintners' Association is seeking to remove the clause obliging publicans to state why a person is refused service. Travellers' organisations and groups representing people of foreign background want the clause to stay. Mr Julian Baldwin, chairman of Harmony, a group set up to combat racism and discrimination, says:

"The publicans claim that they want this clause in the proposed Bill taken out so that they can continue to restrict people like drug dealers, alcoholics and troublemakers from their premises with out legal backlash.

"But inevitably there will be those who will continue to abuse the law - or lack of it - facilitating exclusion to include personal prejudice."

The Department of Equality and Law Reform sees no need for an equivalent of the British Race Relations Act, which has yet to be extended to Northern Ireland.

"If we have these three pieces of legislation, we have in effect a Race Relations Act. We are covering all the issues related to race relations incitement, equal status and employment," a spokesman said.