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Charity bike rides possibly harassed

riders charityCharity motorcycle rides last weekend may have been harassed by Queensland Police as part of the crackdown on outlaw bikie gangs.
Motorcycle Riders Association of Queensland president Chris Mearns says they have received about six complaints so far, but he has not been able to substantiate them.
“One was a Down Syndrome charity support ride at the weekend,” he says.
“We were getting reports that they were generally harassed and treated without due respect, either going to or participating in the ride.
“It’s starting to get to a situation where it is becoming a bit of a worry.”
He says they have an MRAQ meeting tonight where he hopes to confirm or reject the allegations.
Meanwhile he has called for calm over reports today in The Courier-Mail that the Queensland Cabinet will today consider legislation allowing police to stop three or more bike riders on suspicion of being outlaw bikies even if they are not wearing club patches.
The report has caused outrage on social media this morning both in Queensland, nationally and around the world with calls for protest rides.
Participants in the successful NSW “Say NO to $2000 CTP-Greenslip” campaign have pledged their support for any protests planned.
Former MotoGP racer Chris Vermeulen has also pledged support for a possible protest. “I am keen to help stop it if it goes that far,” he says.
However, Mearns says the report may include “a lot of misquoting and misconceptions at the moment”.
He says Attorney General Jarrod Bleijie rang at 7.15am “trying to settle down what came out in The Courier-Mail this morning”.
In that report he stated that the crackdown would include any group of three or more riders whether they had outlaw patches or not.
In a later report on the CM website, he says they would not target innocent riders.
Mearns says that is not what the MRAQ is concerned about.
“It’s the amount of rhetoric since events of the past week. It’s out of control,” he says.
“The public is getting such a one-sided view that it is turning to the situation that anyone who rides a motorcycle is fair game.
“At the minute we are in the throes of collecting various information from groups and people affected by this situation.
“We believe and have been told that certain charity rides were interfered with over the weekend.
“Those reports need to be substantiated but if they are correct in any way shape or form that is what we are concerned about.”
He says the rhetoric is “driving a wedge” between bike riders and other road users that could lead to road rage.
“It may lead to action being taken by other road users because they believe they are dealing with outlaws and that is something we don’t want to see,” he says.
“If a driver has 10 or 20 motorcycles around them, the general pub can’t differentiate between the average motorcyclist and patch club members and they may take action they feel is justified.
“That’s our major concern and I’ve told the attorney general the whole situation needs to be cooled down.”

  1. So you’re concerned that motorists may mistake non-patch riders as ‘outlaw’ bikies and this may lead to road rage. Seems you are condoning road rage against patched bike riders!

  2. As one of the parents at the Down Syndrome event on Sunday, I just wanted to say I was really impressed with how many riders came along to support our kids. I was equally impressed that with all those bikes, noise was kept to a minimum, and the anticipated fear from my daughter never eventuated! I have heard that the media may even use some of the footage in a derogatory way. I certainly hope not, and as a parent, I would like to point out that these bikers raised over $8000 for our kids. How much have the police raised for them?

  3. Newman and his idiot Attorney General are getting a bit carried away here, shades of Old Joh. Queensland beautiful one day,Police state the next.

  4. “Attorney General Jarrod Bleijie … says they would not target innocent riders.” How would the police determine who is an “innocent” rider and who is an “outlaw”? That’s right, by treating all riders as outlaws. Guilty until proven innocent?

  5. Only one group to blame for these new laws: OUTLAW MOTORCYCLE GANGS…if they hadn’t chosen to form criminal organisations instead of normal social motorcycle clubs, if they didn’t keep coming out with stupid statements like “we own the Gold Coast”, if they didn’t make any attempt to hide the fact they exist only to run drugs, prostitution, and stand over rackets, then the new laws wouldn’t exist. Thanks a bunch, OMC’s…

    1. How brainwashed are you? If the outlaw clubs are actually criminal organisations, why are new laws required to arrest them? Perhaps because they aren’t breaking the law, so there is nothing to arrest them for. And as for the “stupid statements” it is a fairly well known fact that as a general rule club members will not speak to the media. That particular quote was made by “anonymous”, and as such it simply cannot be accurately stated that the individual who made the claim (provided their is SOME truth to the quote) is actually a member of any club. Perhaps you think you are in America? Prostitution is a legal industry over here, and if the correct procedures are followed, there is no crime committed.
      This being said, if ANYONE is guilty of selling drugs etc, arrest them, convict them and imprison them.

  6. i was on the dsaq ride on sunday and i saw a rider with no patches and clean looking on a yellow cruiser comin back from the charity event gettin harrassed by qld cops … i was on my super sports bike over the speed limit overtaking the bloke because he was doing a little under the speed limit riding sensibly . they completly ignored me and went for him… it was verry obvious he was discriminated against because of the bike type he rode, he aslo had no other bikes riding with him so they are talkin crap when they say they only pull up groups of three or more… if ur on a cruiser u r fair game

  7. in one of the recent “outlaw bike” stories the courier mail had photos of 2 christian motorcycle club members. Talk about
    stereotyping! if this bill concerned a racial ,religious or just about any other minority group. it would never
    make into law, and for good reason.

  8. Hey Guys – Settle Down a bit will ya’s …

    IF you DO WISH to DO Something about it then Listen UP ….

    This sort of RUBBISH has been done to DEATH before –

    WHY NOT start playing with them a little – I’m sure that IF WE REALLY Wanted to Create some HEADACHES for the MORONS who are in charge of the SITUATION, then here IS a SUGGESTION, OK.

    Form a NEW, SOCIAL MOTOR CYCLE CLUB – SMCC

    With the NAME of – “INNOCENT RIDERS” SMCC

    Have a Some sets of “INNOCENT RIDERS” Rockers & Patches made up. AND have the Internal a CARTOON Depicting an ‘Innocent Rider’ with their ‘Hands UP’ and the Words – “DON’T SHOOT” embroidered across the Silhouette in RED Letters…

    Have some T – Shirts made up with “I’M INNOCENT” emblazioned across the front & back.

    Just think of HOW MUCH HAVOC this would CAUSE and HOW much of a HEADACHE it would CAUSE the POLITICIAN/S and the POLICE – and the Disruption to the whole DUMB Idiotic “BIKIE” Laws .

    And IF done RIGHT the amount of MEDIA that a Situation of Hundreds or even Thousands of INNOCENT RIDERS who ARE being TARGETED by the Politicians and Police for DOING Nothing Other THAN RIDING a MOTORCYCLE – INNOCENTLY !!!

    AM I MAKING MY POINT HERE ???

    Get OFF your ARSES and DO Something POSITIVE about the SITUATION ….

    I am a Disability Pensioner who loves to ride a cruiser motorcycle and be as free as a bird when out riding and I WILL GLADLY DONATE the first $100 of my Next Pension towards the Purchase of some “INNOCENT RIDERS (Don’t Shoot) SMCC” – Rockers & Patches – Should Someone wish to take UP the Challenge to Embroider Them (in the Quantities Needed) …..

    IF YOU are going to be Harrassed for Nothing – THEN GIVETHE BASTARDS SOMETHING TO EARN THEIR PAY CHEQUES – CLOG UP THE HIGHWAYS, The COURTS, THE MEDIA – TELL & SHOW THE WHOLE WORLD JUST HOW STUPID THE GOVERNMENT/S ARE HERE IN AUSTRALIA.
    Have your phone cameras or GoPro’s at the ready for Video EVIDENCE of HARRASSMENT for doing Nothing Wrong Except Riding a Motorcycle & SOCIALISING Innocently … 🙂

    IF you are Tired of Beating your head against a Brick Wall – Then TAKE some AFFIRMATIVE ACTION for ONCE in your BIKING LIFE !!!

    All this from a 64yr old EX Queenslander who escaped from the Police State back when Joh was in Power – when, if 3 motorcyclists were gathered together back then – you were Definitely Treated LIKE a CRIMINAL … INNOCENT or NOT !!!

    I WILL SUPPORT YOUR RIGHT TO PROTEST IN ANY WAY YOU CAN – Provided IT IS WITHIN THE LAW/S of AUSTRALIA – IT IS OUR COUNTRY – FIGHT FOR OUR FREEDOM/S !!!

    TAKE NO PRISONERS !!! – INNOCENT RIDERS – RIDE ON !!!

    frostbite
    RURAL NSW

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