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‘Hit riders where it hurts’, ‘Clamp down on these thugs’, ‘Riders treated worse than rapists’ - Wheels24 readers respond to tough new laws in Australia to combat biker gangs.
Earlier in October 2013, Wheels24 reported that tough new laws to combat biker gangs were passed in Queensland, Australia, as authorities seek "to destroy these criminal organisations" that, the authorities claim, are "a growing menace across the country".
BIKER GANG MENACE
Biker gangs, allegedly linked to organised crime, face jail time in a bikers-only prison with no gym facilities or TV access and having their motorcycles destroyed. Guilty riders will also be banned from owning or working in tattoo parlours.
Wheels24 readers shared their thoughts on the new laws:
PETER FLINT: What Australia is proposing sounds fantastic and exactly what we need in South Africa. These geriatric delinquents on their Harley-Davidsons shouldn't be allowed to use mob mentality to intimidate ordinary law-abiding citizens.
CLIFF BIANCHINA: That's rather unfair that riders get treated worse than rapists and murderers. I can understand authorities wanting to clamp down on gangs but this doesn't seem like a viable way of going about it. What's up with the tattoo shop idea? I think they're going overboard.
Prisons shouldn’t have TV and gym facilities. They're incarcerated because of their bad choices and therefore should be cut off from the rest of society. Why do rapists get a TV when they should be left in a dark hole to rot?
'I SAY GO FOR IT'
DEVAN CHETTY: “I recently asked an Australian visitor about crime in Queensland. He mentioned that the biker gang menace is so bad that Gold Coast clients have to pay for fuel before filling up and convenience store doors are locked at night so purchases have to be made through a window.
Maybe the new laws are not just a knee-jerk response. As they say - the grass is not always greener on the other side!
ANDRE SCHOLTZ: “This is just politics. Why not create separate prisons for rapists, paedophiles and other gangsters? They can tattoo their intended victims. There is the negative stigma attached to motorcyclists. All criminals should be targeted regardless of their mode of transport.”
JAMIEL TOEFY: My question is how do you police who is criminal and who is not? High-powered guns, explosives, drugs, extortion… come on, that's a recipe for disaster and who gets caught in the crossfire – innocents…
So I say, go for it! Let the police clamp down on these thugs and hit them where it hurts. How many innocents have lost their lives? What about their democratic rights? How many countless lives have been destroyed by the scourge of drugs and shootings either by death or emotional trauma?
To those bikers who go out genuinely for the pleasure of a ride, I’m sorry my brothers and sisters but for your own safety and peace of mind, sacrifices need to be made…”
Banned from working in a tattoo shop? Not allowed to wear badges/bandanas? Prison conditions different to those of rapists and murderers? What do you readers think? Email us and we’ll publish your thoughts on Wheels24.
Earlier in October 2013, Wheels24 reported that tough new laws to combat biker gangs were passed in Queensland, Australia, as authorities seek "to destroy these criminal organisations" that, the authorities claim, are "a growing menace across the country".
BIKER GANG MENACE
Biker gangs, allegedly linked to organised crime, face jail time in a bikers-only prison with no gym facilities or TV access and having their motorcycles destroyed. Guilty riders will also be banned from owning or working in tattoo parlours.
Wheels24 readers shared their thoughts on the new laws:
PETER FLINT: What Australia is proposing sounds fantastic and exactly what we need in South Africa. These geriatric delinquents on their Harley-Davidsons shouldn't be allowed to use mob mentality to intimidate ordinary law-abiding citizens.
CLIFF BIANCHINA: That's rather unfair that riders get treated worse than rapists and murderers. I can understand authorities wanting to clamp down on gangs but this doesn't seem like a viable way of going about it. What's up with the tattoo shop idea? I think they're going overboard.
Prisons shouldn’t have TV and gym facilities. They're incarcerated because of their bad choices and therefore should be cut off from the rest of society. Why do rapists get a TV when they should be left in a dark hole to rot?
'I SAY GO FOR IT'
DEVAN CHETTY: “I recently asked an Australian visitor about crime in Queensland. He mentioned that the biker gang menace is so bad that Gold Coast clients have to pay for fuel before filling up and convenience store doors are locked at night so purchases have to be made through a window.
Maybe the new laws are not just a knee-jerk response. As they say - the grass is not always greener on the other side!
ANDRE SCHOLTZ: “This is just politics. Why not create separate prisons for rapists, paedophiles and other gangsters? They can tattoo their intended victims. There is the negative stigma attached to motorcyclists. All criminals should be targeted regardless of their mode of transport.”
JAMIEL TOEFY: My question is how do you police who is criminal and who is not? High-powered guns, explosives, drugs, extortion… come on, that's a recipe for disaster and who gets caught in the crossfire – innocents…
So I say, go for it! Let the police clamp down on these thugs and hit them where it hurts. How many innocents have lost their lives? What about their democratic rights? How many countless lives have been destroyed by the scourge of drugs and shootings either by death or emotional trauma?
To those bikers who go out genuinely for the pleasure of a ride, I’m sorry my brothers and sisters but for your own safety and peace of mind, sacrifices need to be made…”
Banned from working in a tattoo shop? Not allowed to wear badges/bandanas? Prison conditions different to those of rapists and murderers? What do you readers think? Email us and we’ll publish your thoughts on Wheels24.