Victims will be forced to speak about bikie-related bashing VICTIMS of a vicious bashing linked to a mystery bikie feud may be forced to open up about the attack or face jail time, after a court overturned their right to silence. The Queensland Court of Appeal has ruled that two men who were severely beaten at their own Brisbane premises by armed men in disguise last year should have answered a question about the event in Crime and Misconduct Commission "star chamber" hearings. The men, who are not named for legal reasons, were hauled before hearings last August as part of a probe into violent offences by "members or associates of certain motorcycle gangs" since the previous January. One of the men was beaten unconscious and put in hospital but refused to make a statement or lodge a complaint with police. Court papers reveal the CMC asked him: "On that particular day (of the assault) ... did you see something on the camera that brought your attention to some people coming into the premises?" While witnesses must answer questions in coercive hearings or risk jail time for contempt, the man refused, citing fear of retribution as a "reasonable excuse." "I'm genuinely fearful of my safety and life if I answer any questions about these matters," he said. His solicitor also raised concerns that police, who would have access to what was said to the CMC, could leak details to the media for "so-called investigative reporting." The Supreme Court upheld the men's right to silence in December after the CMC moved to have both of them charged with contempt. However, the Court of Appeal unanimously overturned that ruling in a decision released yesterday, paving the way for the CMC to once again haul the men in for secret questioning. Chief Justice Paul de Jersey found there was a "high public interest in identifying those responsible for serious criminal offending." "While the respondents' own concern is understandable, that it is borne of the previous assault ... was not enough to warrant a conclusion that they had reasonable excuse not to answer a question which if answered may have led to the identification of their assailants," he wrote. It was "speculative" to argue that their assailants would find out about the circumstances around their interrogation by the CMC "in breach of law." The Chief Justice noted the men had knocked back the chance to give more evidence to back their fears. If called before the CMC again, the men would "no doubt" get the chance to do so, he wrote. This could involve explaining any past association they may have had with members of motorcycle gangs or "knowledge of the way such organisations proceed." A CMC spokesman told The Courier-Mail the finding "speaks for itself" but it was not appropriate to comment further.