GERMANY SEEKS TO BAN SCIENTOLOGY

NOTE TO SELF: WONDER HOW THIS WILL AFFECT CELEBRITY BELIEVERS?



Germany's top security officials said Friday they consider the goals of the Church of Scientology to be in conflict with the principles of the nation's constitution and will seek to ban the organization.

The German government considers Scientology a commercial enterprise.

The interior ministers of the nation's 16 states plan to give the nation's domestic intelligence agency the task of preparing the necessary information to ban the organization, which has been under observation for a decade on allegations that it "threatens the peaceful democratic order" of the country.

The Church of Scientology, in a response sent to CNN, denounced the German proposal, calling it out of step with various international court rulings. Read the Church of Scientology response

The ministers, as well as federal Interior Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble, "consider Scientology to be an organization that is not compatible with the constitution," said Berlin Interior Minister Ehrhart Koerting, who presided over the officials' two-day conference.

READ THE REST OF THE STORY HERE:
http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/europe/12/07/germany.scientology.ap/index.html?iref=mpstoryview

Church of Scientology's Response:

While failing to pursue the Hamburg Minister of Interior's motion, the Minister of Interior Conference has demonstrated that they are completely out of step with the rest of the world. Their statement and recommendation are a blatant attempt at justifying the ongoing and never-ending discrimination against the Church of Scientology and its members in Germany.

Ten years of OPC surveillance has uncovered absolutely no wrongdoing which could justify a ban, as conceded by Federal Minister of Interior Wolfgang Schauble in his interview with German Radio. There is no evidence of wrongdoing to uncover.

The suggestion that the OPC not only continue but expand its intrusive and illegal investigation represents a desperate attempt to concoct a justification for a never-ending investigation that wastes millions of taxpayer euros.

FULL RESPONSE:
http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/europe/12/07/scientology.response/index.html