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Uniforms threat by
bikie gang
05jun05
A NOTORIOUS bikie gang is threatening a social club for veteran riders
because they don't like the nametags on their jackets.
The outlaw Rebels gang
has told Australia's biggest social motorcycle club, the Ulysses club, to
change their uniform or face "enlightenment".
The Rebels, who have a
history of organised crime, drug distribution and bloody battles with rival
gangs, have taken it as a personal insult that Ulysses riders are wearing
"rockers", or tags, on their jackets.
They are fiercely
protective of such logos, usually positioned above or below club insignias,
which they consider hard-fought badges of seniority and bikie "honour".
The rockers of Ulysses
riders, aged from 40 to 91, contain seemingly innocuous information such as
nicknames and the branch they belong to.
Club officials have
told members to do exactly what the Rebels have requested, or face the
consequences.
This stance has
angered some riders, who believe they should not be pushed around. Some
already have resigned and others will voice their opinion at a special
meeting on Tuesday.
"It's gone from
threats of violence to where Rebel gang members are removing tags off our
jackets. If we don't do it, we will be getting a flogging," a senior
Brisbane-based Ulysses club member said.
The battle started in
March when Canberra-based Rebels confronted Ulysses members during the
Ulysses annual meeting, attended by about 5000 riders.
A 60-year-old woman
was among those threatened.
Later that month,
Ulysses national secretary Kim Kennerson and treasurer Vic Lesslie were
summoned to a tense meeting at the Rebels' Sydney headquarters, where feared
national boss Alex Vella reinforced the gang's position.
As a result, the
Ulysses national executive has told members to take off their rockers in the
interests of safety and threatened dissenters with expulsion.
Mr Kennerson wrote on
the club's website that it was a meeting he would never forget.
"Expectations of a
quiet face-to-face meeting with Alex and a few others was quickly dispelled
as we walked into a hall full of Rebels, all seated awaiting our arrival.
"Three seats were
already allocated for us facing Alex, who was seated with six of his
lieutenants, three either side, with the remaining 40-50 members behind us."
During the meeting, it
was alleged that some Ulysses members had told the Rebels to "get f-----, we
will wear what we like".
"When this was
mentioned, it did not go down well with those present," Mr Kennerson wrote.
More than 100 Ulysses
members plan to meet their national executive at the Logan City Tavern on
Tuesday to discuss the matter.
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