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Home > Official Documents > Church of Scientology Reply to The German Government’s Defense of its Discrimination
Church of Scientology Reply to the German Government’s Defense of its Discrimination
A summary of the main human rights reports follows:
* In March 1998, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Religious Intolerance told the 54th U.N. Human Rights Session in Geneva that religious minorities in Germany face a climate of intolerance. The Special Rapporteur had conducted his own 11-day investigation, speaking with senior political and judicial figures as well as representatives of the Catholic and Protestant Churches and religious minorities. His official report criticized religious discrimination against Muslims, Mormons, Scientologists, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Bahais, Hare Krishnas and members of the Unification Church.
Due to the gravity of what he found, the Special Rapporteur recommended that the German government “beyond day-to-day management, must implement a strategy to prevent intolerance in the field of religion and belief.” He urged the government to undertake “sustained efforts... to promote and develop a culture of tolerance and human rights.”
There are no indications that the former government intended to implement any part of the Rapporteur’s recommendations; indeed, Bavarian Interior Minister Guenther Beckstein went so far as to claim that the report exonerated his government from charges of discrimination. Not a single German official contradicted him.
* In August 1998, more than 60 U.S. congressmen signed onto a resolution criticizing the German government for religious discrimination and urging Congress and the President to demand that German officials respect the religious freedom of American and German citizens.
Continued...
For further information contact:
Leisa Goodman
(323) 960-3500
e-mail: humanrightsofficer@scientology.org
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