Alt.religion.scientology
Week in Review Volume 5, Issue 22
9/10/2000
by Rod Keller [rkeller@...]
copyright 2000

Alt.religion.scientology Week in Review summarizes the most significant
postings from the Usenet group Alt.religion.scientology for the preceding
week for the benefit of those who can't follow the group as closely as
they'd like. Out of thousands of postings, I attempt to include news of
significant events, new affidavits, court rulings, new contributors,
whatever. I hope you find it useful. Like many readers of a.r.s, I have a
kill file. So please take into consideration that I may not have seen some
of the most significant postings.

The articles in A.r.s Week in Review are brief summaries of articles
posted to the newsgroup. They include message IDs for the original
articles, and many have a URL to get more information. You may be able to
find the original article, depending on how long your site stores articles
in the newsgroup before expiring them.

Free A.r.s Week in Review subscriptions are available.
Subscriptions are also available on ONElist. Email
weekinreview-subscribe@onelist.com or see http://www.onelist.com
Week in Review is archived at:
http://www.xenu.net/archive/WIR/
http://wpxx02.toxi.uni-wuerzburg.de/~krasel/CoS/ars-summary.html
http://www.uni-bonn.de/~uzs1dc/scientology/wir.html
http://www.religio.de/publik/arsfaq.html

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> Clearwater

Christianity Today published articles this week on Scientology and its
attempt to dominate Clearwater.

"Some Christians in Clearwater call Scientology a pushy, money-driven cult
that preys on the vulnerable. Others avoid confrontation, striving to
tolerate or even welcome Scientology as a member of the religious
community. Bill Anderson, pastor of Calvary Baptist Church of Clearwater
for the past 25 years, says it has been difficult to treat Scientologists
with love while countering their teachings with biblical truth. 'This has
really sharpened my focus about the exclusivity of the gospel,' Anderson
told Christianity Today. 'Part of my challenge as a pastor has been trying
to help my people live not only as good people but to live as good
witnesses. Too often, I'm afraid, Christians are afraid to stand on the
fact that only Jesus can save you.'

"Scientologists have made persistent and persuasive efforts to win the
favor of key officials and municipal leaders in Clearwater. Scientology
members clean vacant lots, plant sea oats to stop beach erosion, and hang
holiday decorations in December. They led volunteer citizen councils to
prepare the city for Y2K and created their own Boy Scout and Girl Scout
troops. Scientologists hold annual parties for local orphans, support
anti-drug education in community schools, and sponsor Winter Wonderland, a
children's carnival, every Christmas season.

"Scientologists say they were welcomed by some religious leaders,
including Otis and Barbara Green of Everybody's Tabernacle, the rabbinic
leaders of Congregation of Beth Shalom, and the United Church of Christ's
hospice director, Doyce Wise. Largely unwelcome in most of Clearwater's
religious circles, Scientologists created their own interfaith council and
launched ministry projects for the community. Scientologists also actively
engaged in community service, outchurching Clearwater's Christians. But
some residents question their desire to serve. 'Their true agenda is
control,' Anderson says. 'They don't really want to be known. They want to
get along like a tiger wants to get along with a rabbit.'

"Ben Puckett, dean of enrollment at Clearwater Christian College adds that
some Scientology outreach in Clearwater is not openly affiliated with the
church. 'They have a great deal of good-will programs that are so general
and euphemistic that unless you ask, you wouldn't know they are
Scientology-run,' Puckett says, citing Narconon, Criminon, and the True
School, a Scientology elementary school, as examples.

"'It's generally believed that fewer people visit the downtown area
because of the hundreds of uniformed Scientologists walking the streets,'
says Marshall Van Dine, minister of First United Methodist Church of
Clearwater. 'But most people have accepted their presence in the
community.' 'A lot of what they have done downtown has been seen as
positive and community-building,' Pastor C. Philip Whitener of Grace
Lutheran Church told CT. But, he wonders, 'How much control will they
exert?'

"Craig Branch of the Apologetics Resource Institute and former
Scientologist Brian Haney visited Clearwater in April to encourage and
educate church members. Branch says he senses a new urgency in local
pastors to stand up in a spirit of Christian love against Scientology.
'We're concerned about the balance between educating people on
Scientology's false claims and yet still urging them to act with love and
compassion toward Scientologists,' he says. 'These churches are committed
to forming a prayer front and developing a heart for people who are really
suffering spiritually.'"

"Brian Haney labored to give his life fulfillment in many ways. The
37-year-old entrepreneur had been through two marriages, built a $100
million corporation, and attained the coveted state of 'clear' as a
Scientologist, meaning he had achieved the high level of freedom, personal
control, and independence Scientology promises its followers. But none of
these triumphs allayed his spiritual emptiness and dissatisfaction.

"'They tell you that you've made it, that you're in, and you just keep
walking around thinking: Shouldn't I feel different?' Haney told
Christianity Today. In 1994, Haney and his wife left the Church of
Scientology, though they faced great resistance. At one point they
contacted local police with concerns about their safety.

"He began attending St. John's African Methodist Episcopal Church with his
wife and children. 'I must have listened to about 50 sermons of
Spirit-filled, Word-based teaching before I realized that I needed to give
my life to Christ,' Haney said. 'I was worried. I had joined a cult in the
past, so I wanted to know how to discern the truth.' As Haney's faith
grew, his disappointment toward Scientology softened. 'At first I was
really mad. I mean they ripped me off,' Haney says, estimating that he
gave more than $1 million to the church. 'But as I grew in my walk with
God, I realized that I just feel sorry for the people trapped in that
mindset. It makes me want to weep now, not fight them.'"

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> Jenna Elfman

The Times of India published an article on Scientology celebrity Jenna
Elfman on September 7th.

"Elfman has been quite open about her debt to that great Hollywood
powerbroker, the Church of Scientology. In fact, for all the secrecy
surrounding the organisation, Elfman has acted as a veritable one-woman,
wisecracking ambassador. 'I'm making myself more sane, and pulling away
the shit so that I can be present and be able and comfortable and willing
to be in front of other people, to reach into their lives to help to
communicate,' she declares. 'I mean, if you can't even be present, then
you can't really help anybody. I mean, on the day that we can all trust
each other, there will be peace on earth. L. Ron Hubbard says that. Start
bringing people together. You know what I mean? If anyone is inspired by
that and creates that, great. What's with sectioning off? Everyone has
something in common. That is that they're of mankind. Everyone has the
same problems, they just have different content. So everybody needs to,
like, you know, work on willing to be there for each other.'"

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> Germany

Suedwest Presse reported on September 5th that Sabine
Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger discussed the issue of Scientology during a
visit to Bavaria.

"Former federal justice minister Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger (FDP)
is currently traveling through the counties of Bavaria. FDP county
representative Karl-Heinz Klass put Scientology and pregnancy crisis
counseling on the agenda. Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger attends United
Nations conferences in Geneva as the political human rights speaker of the
FDP faction and as ombudsman for the Liberals. She often hears in the
sessions that the current situation of the Scientologists in Germany is
equivalent to the persecution of non-mainstream people in the Third Reich.
'There is nothing comparable to what happened to the Jews and
non-mainstream,' said the politician.

"Adherents of the psycho-sect often complain about political persecution
in Germany. In reality, the state attorney's office has often investigated
these Scientologists for tax evasion, reported Hartwig. 'If you ask
government agencies, you may have to wait weeks or months before you get
that answer,' said Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger. Therefore she went to
Hartwig to stock up on books and brochures on the theme of Scientology."

Taz reported on September 5th that Scientology is continuing its attacks
on Thomas Gandow for his work to award Scientology critic Bob Minton a
human rights award.

"On his birthday, August 18, glossy brochures were distributed with the
daily mail in Zehlendorf. Gandow, who has been involved in sects since
the end of the 1970s and who has been sect commissioner of the Evangelical
Church in Berlin-Brandenburg since 1992, was defamed as 'chief
inquisitor,' 'anti-sect commissioner,' 'notorious exorcist of belief,' and
'chief architect for the discrimination campaigns against religious and
weltanschauung communities and their members in parts of Europe.'
Scientology Church Germany demanded Gandow's immediate dismissal from
state Bishop Wolfgang Huber for 'fanatical activism.'

"The occasion for the attacks was the first 'Alternative Charlemagne
Award' given out by the 'European-American Citizens Committee for Human
Rights and Religious Freedom in the USA,' of which Gandow is a member as a
private individual, in June in Leipzig. The award went to U.S. American
Robert Minton, a proven opponent of Scientology. Minton is the founder and
financier of a private incorporated organization in the USA which supports
and makes legal referrals to people who have been adversely affected by
Scientology. As far as Gandow is concerned, 'They're worried because
their sales have dropped dramatically.' Scientology sees an 'archenemy' in
the Evangelical Church in Germany, which has been issuing warnings about
Scientology for many years in its handbook of religious communities. It is
plain to him that, 'I am being attacked because of my efforts against
Scientology.'

"The Evangelical Church of Berlin-Brandenburg stands completely behind its
sect commissioner. Press spokesman Reinhard Lampe stated, 'We are
decisively against all attempts to defame the work of the sect
commissioner.' He says Scientology is 'sensitive' because the Evangelical
Church is providing information about a group 'which pretends to be
religious, but which uses methods which violates human rights.' Thomas
Gandow is taking legal measures against Scientology for asserting false
statements and for insult to person."

Berliner Morgenpost reported on September 6th that Thomas Gandow is
planning a memorial service in Berlin for Lisa McPherson, a Scientologist
who died in Clearwater in Scientology's care.

"Reverend Thomas Gandow cordially invites you to a worship service with
the theme 'Prayer for Lisa McPherson - Dying in Scientology.' Sermon and
intercession will be held on Sunday, September 17 at 11:30 a.m. in the
Luise Church on Gierkeplatz. In conjunction with the service, there will
be an opportunity after the service to attend a discussion with Ursula
Caberta y Diaz, Director of the Work Group on Scientology, who will travel
from Hamburg to attend the service."

Taz reported on September 5th on the book publishing arm of Scientology,
New Era Publications.

"Since about the time the federal government started moving to the city,
Berlin has become the site of increased Scientology operations. Anne
Ruehle, Berlin Senate sect commissioner, believes the Scientologists are
'currently pushing all the buttons they can to get a foot in the door in
Germany.' In doing that, they are struggling mainly against their
surveillance by Constitutional Security. Last year Scientology put
Bavaria's Interior Minister Guenther Beckstein, of all people, in the same
category as communist China.

"Ute Kiesel, spokeswoman for New Era Publications, Inc., verified that
many ad companies refused to take the work to advertise for books. 'There
is too much influence from the side of the government.' And what do the
books have to offer? The friendly woman on the publishing company's info
hotline promised us that in reading the book you would finally learn 'how
this thinking apparatus works.' She said the book by the 'leading
best-seller author in the field of the human mind' is appropriate for all
who 'would like to know from where they come.'"

Der Tagesspiegel reported on September 8th that Scientology has been mass
mailing the German edition of Freedom magazine.

"The Scientologists have sent their 'Freiheit' magazine to 20,000
households in the Steglitz and Zehlendorf via a mass mailing - without
address, return sender and without other information. Another 20,000
copies were distributed to pedestrians in downtown Berlin. Sabine Weber,
Vice President of Scientology in Germany, justified her choice of the two
districts, they had 'the greatest need for information.' The
Scientologists wanted to instruct the residents of Steglitz and Zehlendorf
about the work of persons and institutions of which the Scientologists
disapprove.

"'That is where SPD politician Rennebach comes from. She is the political
spokeswoman of the SPD and closely allied to the Evangelical Church,' said
Weber. 'It contains false allegations,' said Thomas Gandow, who is
looking at taking legal steps against the sect. 'Freiheit' says that
Gandow 'directs a whole army of cover organizations.' The
Berlin-Brandenburg Church has already made its statement supporting the
minister. 'That is really an attack against the Evangelical Church as a
whole,' said Thomas Gandow, 'but the Church has not sent me into the
desert yet. The involvement of the American management in Germany has
gotten stronger. I have now brought their anger upon me, too.' This
edition of Freiheit also attacks Hamburg Senator of the Interior Hartmuth
Wrocklage. According to a statement from Sabine Weber, Scientology has
also distributed 80,000 copies in Hamburg.

"'We have a general obligation to accept and deliver,' said post office
spokeswoman Barbara Scheil. One could interfere only when a broadcast
contained material pertaining to something visibly criminal. In the case
of the 'Freiheit' broadcast, it could not even be determined where the
mass mailing had been dropped off. Barbara Scheil did not think that
receivers of mail such as that could do anything about it."

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> Events

The Los Angeles Times reported on September 9th on a Scientology seminar.

"Robert Brennan will present a seminar on the beliefs of Scientology from
6:45 to 9 p.m. Sunday at Sepulveda Unitarian-Universalist Society, 9550
Haskell Ave., North Hills. Information: (818) 894-9251."

The Anchorage Daily News reported an open house at the mission there.

"The Church of Scientology, Mission of Anchorage, will host an open house
at 7 p.m. Tuesday at 1300 E. 68th Ave., Suite 208A. The event will include
a presentation of the movie 'Orientation,' plus refreshments. All are
welcome; no reservations are necessary. For more information, call
349-8844."

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> Protest / Revenge Summary

Graham Berry continued his protests in Los Angeles with two protests on
LRH Way this week.

"I made a quick call to a friend and told him of my plans. Two minutes
after we hung up he called back. He said: 'Your telephone is bugged. As
soon as we hung up I got this telephone call that merely snarled: stay
away from Graham Berry.' I was appropriately dressed in my stylish black
Scientology Kills t-shirt. I was armed with picket-sign, camera and
cell-phone. The city block was crowded with staffers and public members
arriving for evening courses. The Estates Project Force (EPF) was
cleaning the street gutters. Suddenly someone realized what I was doing
and carrying - the truth! Stunned thetans were herded like flocks of
sheep, into AOLA and the American St. Hill building. None of the fleeing
scientologists dared to look back and read my message: 'LRH died on Psych
drugs.'

"Those in the American St. Hill building lobby were still able to see the
other side of my picket sign: 'Scientology: church of fair game'. Soon
the fleeing OTs and other less powerful thetan beings were pushed into
internal course rooms. The dozen or scientology security staffers and I
then settled down to our usual Mexican standoff for the next sixty
minutes. Absolute silence and their new DA flyer: 'who is this man and
why is he here?' As darkness descended at 8 pm, I wandered past the
International Association of Scientologists building, tailed by a security
goon, and I then drove-off as the 'all clear' call was made back to PAC."

"This time it was the Church of $cientology's Pacific Area Command Base
(PAC Base) on L. Ron Hubbard Way. PAC occupies the old Cedars Sinai
Hospital building known in the cult as Big Blue. Just after high noon on
Thursday, September 7, 2000, I approached PAC Base from Sunset Boulevard
and New Hampshire Street. There was no security posted on Fountain Avenue
so all those moving from Bridge Publications to AOLA got to read my sign.
It seemed to enturbulate (upset) the scurrying SO staffers carrying their
important sheaves of paper. I was fully one-third up L. Ron Hubbard Way
before the security staffer looked up and recognized my advancing threat
to the Hubbardians' minds. The security staffer set about ordering the
various scientologists including the OTs inside the buildings.

"I turned and walked across to the PAC Base cafeteria, which is in the
basement of Big Blue. One entire top floor window of Big Blue remains
smashed and boarded up. On another floor a broken pane of glass has gone
unrepaired. By now there were six overt scientology staffers on the
street. They rapidly moved the more daring stragglers inside. Now, eight
minutes into my picket, the street was clear. It remained that way until
after 2 pm when I drifted off to a lunch appointment."

Keith Henson protested this week in San Jose.

"I was in San Jose for other reasons today so the org on Bascum got a
token ten minute picket. One guy came out and took a photo. I started
telling him OT3 and he went back inside with fingers in ears."

John Brownlee reported a protest in Edmonton, Ontario this week.

"There was a surprise picket today at the Edmonton Org with Gerry
Armstrong in attendance."

David Rice reported revenge actions against him for his protests at
Scientology's Gold Base in California.

"A guy in a RV motor home is on vacation and has been parking at the
marina where my boat is. He came up to me and said 'Did you know you're
being stalked?' Seems that for the past two weeks and more, some lunatic
freak Scientologist has been parked next to this vacationer's motor home,
peering intently at every thing I do. My stalker stays in the parking lot
all day no doubt waiting for me to accidentally 'expose my crimes.'

"My stalker told the RV guy all sorts of insane, slanderous tall-tales
about me and pointing my boat out to the guy. 'He's a religious bigot!' my
stalker wailed. 'He's a criminal and he's got a hate web site on the
Internet!' 'He belongs to a hate group that talks via the Internet!' The
Dead Agenting from my stalker apparently went on for some THIRTY MINUTES,
and as each minute passed, he got more and more worked up and crazed. Only
by accident did the stalker say he is a Scientologist. The RV guy thanked
him for the 'information' and closed the door on the stalker's face.

"A day or two later the stalker tried to recruit the RV guy to stalk me
during the times the stalker isn't around. That seems to have been the
final straw. He said 'Every human being has the right to protest. Every
human being has the right to post their opinions on their own web sites on
the Internet. What YOU are doing is ILLEGAL and ABUSIVE! You are stalking
this guy just because he has voiced his opinions. YOU are the nut that
needs to be watched!' I gave the guy a copy of my Live Agenting flyer, and
I explained to him why the crime syndicate has sent such lunatics to stalk
me."

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> Religious Freedom Report

The U.S. State Department issued its second annual report on religious
freedom, describing the situation in various countries and centering much
attention on Scientology. From Yahoo News on September 5th:

"Some of the hundreds of pages of text concentrated on states the U.S.
government says do not fulfill a covenant signed by 144 nations
acknowledging the right to 'have or to adopt a religion or belief of his
choice'. It accused Germany of encouraging discrimination against members
of the Church of Scientology, which enjoys tax-free status in the United
States. Some German officials believed Scientology was a money-making
scheme rather than a religion and government procedures sometimes screened
out its members, it said. In France, a 1996 law labeling 173 groups as
sects included organizations which were 'merely unfamiliar or unpopular,'
some of whose members continued to allege discrimination, it added. In
February, France accused Washington of being too lax on cults and unfairly
blaming France for its harsher stance."

From the section of the report on Germany:

"The Government does not recognize Scientology as a religion and views it
as an economic enterprise. Concerns that Scientology's ideology is opposed
to a democratic state have led to the screening of firms and individuals
in some sectors of business and employment. The U.S. Government has
maintained consistently that the determination that any organization is
religious is for the organization itself. The U.S. Government has
expressed concerns over infringement of individual rights because of
religious affiliation and over the potential for discrimination in
international trade posed by the screening of foreign firms for possible
affiliation with Scientology.

"Several states have published pamphlets detailing the ideology and
practices of nonmainstream religions. The Hamburg Office for the
Protection of the Constitution published 'The Intelligence Service of the
Scientology Organization,' which outlines its claim that Scientology tried
to infiltrate governments, offices, and companies, and that the church
spies on its opponents, defames them, and 'destroys' them. In November
1998, the federal OPC concluded that although there was no imminent danger
for the political system or the economy of infiltration by Scientology,
there were nevertheless indications of tendencies within Scientology which
could be seen as directed against the country's free and democratic order.

"In December 1999, the Stuttgart administrative court ruled that the state
of Baden-Wuerttemberg could not deregister the Church of Scientology as an
ideological nonprofit organization, stating that Scientology's economic
activities could not be classified as commercial if such activities were
used to accomplish the organization's ideological purposes. The state
appealed the decision. In August 1999, the city of Munich revoked the
nonprofit status of the local Scientology organization. In June 1999, the
Munich administrative court rejected an appeal by Scientology and upheld
the November 1995 decision by the city of Munich to deprive the
Scientology-affiliated Celebrity Center Munich of its status as a
nonprofit organization. With the exception of the Church of Scientology in
Baden-Wuerttemberg, no Scientology organization in Germany has tax-exempt
status.

"Some local, state, and federal agencies, businesses, and other
organizations require job applicants and bidders on contracts to sign a
declaration, commonly referred to as a 'sect-filter,' stating that they
are not affiliated with the teachings of L. Ron Hubbard or used the
technologies of L. Ron Hubbard. The Government imposed the use of such
declarations on companies bidding on contracts to provide training
courses. In April 2000, the Hamburg administrative court dismissed the
suit of two Scientology members against the city-state of Hamburg for its
use of 'sect filters.'

"At the end of 1999 and continuing into early 2000, Hamburg's Sect
Commissioner expressed public concern about Microsoft's Windows 2000,
because one of its software functions was developed by a firm whose chief
executive officer is a Scientologist. Although the federal Office for
Security in Information Technology (BSI) has not yet made an investigation
of the software, some Federal government offices are procuring Windows
2000.

"In March 2000, a Scientology exhibit at the Leipzig book fair provoked
complaints about what some visitors considered aggressive marketing
tactics in the hall, and Leipzig authorities are reviewing whether to
allow the exhibitors to return next year. The Federal Press and
Information Office's Visitor's Bureau intervened in April 2000 with a
Berlin hotel, forcing the hotel to cancel Scientology's reservations for
rooms for an exhibit titled 'What is Scientology?' The hotel claimed that
the Visitor's Bureau threatened to cancel several hundred thousand dollars
worth of reservations if Scientology were allowed to exhibit in the
hotel."

On France:

"On February 7, 2000, the Interministerial Mission for the Fight Against
Sects submitted its first annual report to the Prime Minister, which
addressed the perceived problem of 'sects.' Publication of the report had
been delayed; the delay was due to government reservations about the
content of the report, which reportedly advocated new legislation aimed at
abolishing a number of so-called 'dangerous sects.' The report presented
two options: The use of criminal cases against individuals for violating
existing laws and the use of existing administrative and political means -
a 1936 decree against 'factious leagues'. The report specifically cited
concerns regarding the Church of Scientology and the Solar Temple group.

"In June 1999, the National Assembly released its second report on sects,
which addressed the finances of the groups. The report focused on
multinational groups, especially Jehovah's Witnesses and the Church of
Scientology. The stated basis of concern was that these groups may use
excessive or dishonest means to obtain donations, which then are
transferred out of the country and beyond the reach of French tax
authorities. The report also raised questions about volunteers, who should
be compensated under the law for having provided uncompensated labor to
'for-profit' organizations.

"In April 1999, an official of a district of Paris refused in writing a
request to stage an art exhibition on city property because of the
applicant's affiliation with the Church of Scientology. According to the
1905 law separating church and state, religious associations are not taxed
on voluntary donations that they receive, although all churches pay taxes
on certain activities. The Government currently does not recognize the
Church of Scientology or some branches of Jehovah's Witnesses as
qualifying religious associations, and therefore subjects them to a 60
percent tax on all funds that they receive. Tax claims asserted in 1994-95
against several Scientology churches forced them into bankruptcy. In the
case of the Paris church, the Ministry of Finance refused to grant the
church authorization to import funds to pay the claimed taxes even though
the church offered to pay the total amount of all taxes assessed.

"A number of court cases have involved former members who have sued the
Church for fraud and sometimes for the practice of medicine without a
license. According to representatives from the Church of Scientology,
there also have been cases under the data privacy act brought against the
group by former members who have continued to receive mailings from the
parent church in the United States. In November 1999, the Marseille court
in that case found a former local leader of the Church of Scientology and
four other church employees guilty of fraud for swindling money from
former members. The court sentenced the local leader to 2 years in prison,
of which 18 months were suspended and the remaining 6 months served prior
to sentencing, and a fine of approximately $16,700. The other four members
received suspended sentences; charges against two other persons were
dropped.

United Kingdom:

"In November 1999, the Charity Commission rejected a Church of Scientology
application for charitable status, concluding that Scientology is not a
religion for the purposes of charity law. The Church of Scientology
asserts that it faces discrimination due to the failure of the Government
to treat Scientology as a religion. In particular Scientology ministers
are not regarded as ministers of religion under prison regulations, and
thus they are not permitted to provide official pastoral care to
prisoners; nor are they considered ministers of religion for the purpose
of immigration relations. The Government bases its treatment of
Scientology on a 1970 judgment by the Court of Appeal, which held that
Scientology chapels did not qualify as places of worship under the Places
of Worship Registration Act of 1855. In November 1999, the Charity
Commission, which acts independently of the Government and is accountable
to the courts for its decisions, rejected a Church of Scientology
application for charitable status, concluding that Scientology is not a
religion for the purposes of charity law, as 'the core practices of
Scientology, being auditing and training, do not constitute worship.' It
also declared that 'Public benefit arising from the practice of
Scientology and/or the purposes of the Church of Scientology had not been
established.'

Sweden:

"The law permits official institutions, such as government ministries and
Parliament, to provide copies to the public of documents that are filed
with them, even though such documents may be unpublished and protected by
copyright law. This is due to a contradiction between the Constitution's
freedom of information provisions and the country's international
obligations to protect unpublished copyrighted works. This contradiction
has affected copyrighted, unpublished documents belonging to the Church of
Scientology which have been made available to the public by the Parliament
in accordance with domestic legislation. The Government is now in the
process of drafting new legislation designed to eliminate the
contradiction and protect copyrights."

Spain:

"Religions not officially recognized, such as the Church of Scientology,
are treated as cultural associations."

Russia:

"The Moscow directorate of justice repeatedly has refused registration of
at least five religious organizations, besides Jehovah's Witnesses,
including the Salvation Army and the Church of Scientology. Originally
registered in 1994, the Moscow Church of Scientology has applied 3 times
for reregistration under the 1997 law, only to have the applications
denied. As of mid-2000, the Church was applying a fourth time. The Moscow
general procurator and approximately 70 individuals representing members
of the FSB, Federal Tax Police, the local police, and other law
enforcement organizations in April 1999 conducted a high-profile, 3-day
raid on the Hubbard Humanitarian Center, which is affiliated with the
Moscow Church of Scientology. This was the second such raid. It was
undertaken in connection with charges by the Procurcacy that the Center
was engaging in commercial enterprise without a license and had failed to
pay taxes. Although the Center successfully reregistered as a social
organization in 1997 in accordance with legal requirements that such
organizations reregister by July 1, 1999, a Moscow court subsequently
invalidated the reregistration and ordered the Center to be liquidated, a
verdict upheld by a higher court. However, by mid-2000 this had not taken
place and the center continued to operate as a registered social
organization. A separate case based on similar charges was initiated
against the Center's director, Gennadiy Kudinov, who is also head of the
Church. Church officials believe that the ruling is part of a broader
attack on the Church and its activities.

"St. Petersburg authorities arbitrarily detained six Scientologists for
psychiatric evaluation. In January in St. Petersburg, Vladimir Tretyak,
leader of Sentuar (the local branch of the Church of Scientology), was
accused by St. Petersburg chief psychiatrist Larisa Rubina of inflicting
psychological damage on his coreligionists. On June 17, six members of
Sentuar - Mikhail Dvorkin, Igor Zakrayev, Irina Shamarina, Svetlana
Kruglova, Svetlana Pastushenkova, and Lyudmila Urzhumtseva - were
hospitalized forcibly and underwent 3 weeks of criminal psychiatric
investigation by order of Boris Larionov, procurator of the Vyborgskiy
district of St. Petersburg. In televised remarks, Rubina reported their
July 8 release and declared that the six were mentally competent."

Austria:

"The Church of Scientology and the Hindu Mandir Association withdrew their
applications. Among the larger groups are the Church of Scientology, with
between 5,000 and 10,000 members, and the Unification Church, with
approximately 700 adherents throughout the country.

"In November 1999 and June 2000, a U.S. singer experienced harassment by
an anti-Scientology group at two of his performances. The American
previously had supported the Church of Scientology at events; however
since 1998 he no longer publicly has supported the organization. Police
authorities fined the demonstrators and offered police protection for the
singer's next appearances. In October 1999, Austrian Telekom, the largest
telephone company in the country, transferred a computer specialist from a
sensitive position in an emergency-phone-line coordination office to a
comparable, nonsensitive position. The company became concerned about the
employee's access to sensitive information following media reports that he
was a high-ranking Scientologist."

Belgium:

"On September 30, 1999, a 110-officer police force raided offices and
homes of members of the Church of Scientology. No arrests or convictions
resulted from this raid. The Government is unwilling to provide further
statements, as the matter is still under investigation. Church members
stated that the Government's seizure and retention of church computers,
materials, and files impede the ability of the Church to practice freely."

Denmark:

"Scientologists continue to seek official approval as a religious
organization. Their first application for approval was made in the early
1980's and rejected; the second application was made in mid-1997 and
withdrawn in early 1998. The second application was resubmitted in 1999
and withdrawn again in early 2000, shortly before a decision by the
Government was expected. In withdrawing the application, the Church of
Scientology asked the Ministry of Ecclesiastical Affairs for additional
time to respond to reports about Scientology that had appeared in the
Danish media."

Finland:

"In December 1998, the Education Ministry turned down the application of
the Finnish Association of Scientologists to be registered as a religious
community. This was the first time in the country's history that an
applicant had been denied church status. The Scientologists' application
had been pending for nearly 3 years while the Government awaited
additional information. The Scientologists have indicated that they
intend to begin the process anew and reapply for recognition as a church."

Greece:

"Two laws from the 1930s require recognized or 'known' religious groups to
obtain house of prayer permits from the Ministry of Education and Religion
in order to open houses of worship. The only pending application for
recognition as a known religion at the Ministry is one submitted in
February 2000 by the Scientologists of Greece. Although the deadline
mandated by law for processing the applications is 3 months, the Ministry
had not yet determined whether it would recognize the Scientologist
community as an 'official' religion.

"Scientologists, most of whom are located in the Athens area, practice
their faith through the Center for Applied Psychology (KEFE), a registered
nonprofit philosophical organization. According to the president of the
KEFE, the Scientologists chose to register as a philosophical organization
because legal counsel advised that the Government would not recognize
Scientology as a religion."

Switzerland:

"The Government in 1997 asked an advisory commission to examine
Scientology. The commission's 1998 report concluded that there was no
basis for special monitoring of Scientology, since it did not represent
any direct or immediate threat to the security of the country. However,
the report stated that Scientology had characteristics of a totalitarian
organization and had its own intelligence network.

"In 1998 the city of Basel passed a law banning aggressive tactics for
handing out flyers. This action was prompted by complaints about
Scientologists' methods. In June 1999, Scientology suffered a setback when
it lost a bid in the country's highest court to overturn a municipal law
that barred persons from being approached on the street by those using
'deceptive or dishonest methods.'

"In Zurich in June 1995 Scientologists appealed a city decision that
prohibited them from distributing flyers on public property. In a
qualified victory for the Scientologists, a higher court decided in
September 1999 that the Scientologists' activities were commercial and not
religious, and that the city should grant them and other commercial
enterprises such as fast food restaurants more freedom to distribute
flyers on a permit basis.

"In Winterthur city authorities require Scientologists to apply for an
annual permit to sell their books on public streets. The permit limits
their activities to certain areas and certain days. This practice has been
in effect since 1995 when a district court upheld fines issued to
Scientologists by the city for accosting passersby to invite them onto
their premises to sell them books and do personality tests. The court
ruled that the Scientologists' activities were primarily commercial,
rather than religious, which required them to get an annual permit for the
book sale on public property and prohibited them from distributing flyers
or other advertising material."

Reuters reported on the release of the report on September 5th.

"The United States on Tuesday told the world to heed its founding fathers
who saw religious freedom as a key to democracy, blasting China, Sudan and
Afghanistan among others it found guilty of restricting expression of
faith. It accused Germany of encouraging discrimination against members
of the Church of Scientology, which enjoys tax-free status in the United
States. Some German officials believed Scientology was a money-making
scheme rather than a religion and government procedures sometimes screened
out its members, it said. In France, a 1996 law labeling 173 groups as
sects included organizations which were 'merely unfamiliar or unpopular,'
some of whose members continued to allege discrimination, it added."

From dpa on September 5th:

"The USA renewed its criticism of the use of 'sect filters' against the
mentality of Scientology adherents in Germany. That was said to be a
violation of their rights, stressed the U.S. State Department on Tuesday
in its annual report on religious freedom in the world. 'Sect filter' is
used to describe statements in which job applicants must verify that they
are not members of Scientology or of similar organizations. The State
Department emphasized that the treatment of Scientologists was the subject
of much discussion in the German government. Scientology is under
observation by Constitutional Security in Germany for suspicion of
totalitarian endeavors."

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