Scientology Affair

Bouffier said to have used agency secretary

Wiesbaden, Berlin
March 24, 2000
Frankfurter Rundschau 2000

Wiesbaden. Hesse's Interior Minister Volker Bouffier (CDU), in connection with a controversial real estate deal which he made with a leading Scientology member from Zwickau, used the services of a secretary in his Ministry. That can be concluded from a written statement which Bouffier distributed on Thursday in the State Assembly's Interior Committee. The Greens had demanded Bouffier state his view of the matter after it was revealed that the Minister had used official Ministry letterhead paper for his private business in at least one case.

In his statement, Bouffier verified that he had "determined, after reviewing his private documents, that there were no more letters written on official letterhead paper." However, he does not have copies of all his letters. All the rest of his letters were said to have been written on "representative letterhead," which is remarkably identical to the official Ministerial letterhead except for one detail: on official agency paper, under the Hessian coat-of-arms and the designation of "State Minister," is the clause "Hessian Ministry of the Interior and for Sports," which is missing on the representative letterhead. Also, on the "representative paper" Bouffier has the address of the ministry, but not that of his representative office in the State Assembly.

Bouffier, who is currently travelling in connection with his job, filed charges on his agency paper against his Zwickau business partner, Kurt Fliegerbauer, for non-payment of guaranteed rent. Fliegerbauer is a professing leading member of the Scientology group. The Minister recorded the charges on tape and had his ministry secretary type it up, commented Bouffier. He said that the secretary had done that "outside of her duty hours" and he had paid mail and transcription fees himself, said the Minister.

In 1997, the CDU extensively criticized the former superior state court president, Horst Henrichs, for using the services of his secretary in producing an opinion, for which he received millions as an honorarium, and which was said to have no purpose in common with office material. At that time, the CDU had demanded that Henrichs be suspended. mat.

SPD and Greens:

Interior Minister Bouffier lies anew

Letterhead affair will have Parliamentary after-effects / "Urgent requests for information" will be placed

Wiesbaden, Germany
March 18, 2000
Frankfurter Rundschau

The recently revealed intermingling of work and private interests by Interior Minister Volker Bouffier (CDU) will have Parliamentary after-effects. SPD and Greens have accused Bouffer of a new lie before Parliament, and the Greens have made an urgent request for information in which they demand that Bouffier reveal more information about his business relationship to a Scientology member.

Wiesbaden. On Thursday morning in the State Assembly, Bouffier repeatedly responded to questions by the opposition that he had ever only been involved in real estate business with a professed leading member of the sect-like Scientology group as a private person. In fact he then had to admit, in response to an inquiry by FR on Thursday afternoon, that he had also used his official Interior Minister letterhead paper in the matter. That is how he filed charges against Zwickau Scientologist Kurt Fliegerbauer for non-payment of rent, using the Hessian coat-of-arms and the title of "State Minister, Hessian Ministry of the Interior and for Sports."

"Disrespect of Parliament by making presentations counter to the truth appears to have become standard procedure for the Hessian CDU," said SPD Representative Guenter Rudolph. It was said that Bouffier's later excusing the use of the wrong paper as an "oversight" did not make things any better, "The fact of the lie remains the same, even if there is competition within the CDU of how their own words can most effectively be circumvented," said Rudolph.

The Greens intend to find out whether more letters were written on Ministry letterhead paper and whether ministry staff was used in Bouffier's private affairs. If nothing else, the CDU man, who had vehemently argued for surveillance of the Scientology group by Constitutional Security, may have to state whether he had fallen back upon information from Constitutional Security agents in the matter.

Bouffier, along with Justice Minister Christean Wagner (CDU) and CDU faction chief Norbert Kartmann, had done millions of marks worth of real estate business in 1996 with Fliegerbauer's company in 1996 - allegedly without having been informed, for example, that several months prior, the Zwickau CDU had warned against doing business with the Scientology member and had said that they would no longer sell property to Fliegerbauer in Zwickau. In the meantime, Bouffier has sued the Scientologist because he suspended rental payments which he and Bouffier had agreed upon in 1996. mat.

Minister doing business with Scientologist

Attacks against Bouffier and Wagner for real estate purchases

"Membership not known"

Wiesbaden, Germany
March 17, 2000
Mannheimer Morgen

Wiesbaden. Hesse's Interior Minister Volker Bouffier and Justice Minister Christean Wagner (both CDU) were assailed yesterday in the state assembly for doing business with a Scientologist. The two ministers were attacked because, in 1996, they bought buildings in Zwickau from a company whose business manager is a Scientologist. The same went for CDU faction chief Norbert Kartmann, who also underwent assaults from the opposition.

The top CDU politicians were said to have indirectly supported the organization which is under observation by Constitutional Security, because, of the members' profits, - a total of 3.7 million marks in the above-mentioned cases - the Scientology Organization normally receives 15 percent, said Greens Representative Evelin Schoenhut-Keil. She also accused the CDU of hypocrisy. The Scientologists' goal is said to be the infiltration of society. In pursuing that goal, said Schoenhut-Keil, the organization is not above practicing money-laundering, corruption or psycho-terrorism against its members. Under those circumstances, the Interior Minister responsible for Constitutional Security should not be permitted to conduct business with a leading Scientology, it was stated.

In response, Interior Minister Volker Bouffier (CDU) stressed that the CDU politicians had not known anything of the business manager's membership in Scientology at the time the purchase was made. He also said he did not have a chance to check it out: "That is not in the basic book of rules," said Bouffier. In 1997, the business manager had submitted sworn testimony stating that he was not a Scientologist. Even if the opposite of that would have happened, stressed Bouffier, he would not have been able to terminate his five year contract because of that. "You do not get a contract dissolved that way," he said. In the meantime, the two ministers have sued the business manager because he is not keeping to the rent which he guaranteed. "That way and only that way is how you get out of the contract," said Bouffier. lhe.

Documents bring Bouffier yet more difficulty

Controversial real estate business with Scientologist: Minister said to be mixing private matters and work matters

Wiesbaden, Germany
March 17, 2000
Frankfurter Rundschau

by Matthias Bartsch

The consequences of leading Hessian Christian Democrats doing real estate business with a professed member of the Scientology group has put Interior Minister Volker Bouffier (CDU) under heavy pressure. Contrary to what he presented in the Hessian State Assembly, Bouffier quite openly mixed work matters with private in this affair.

Wiesbaden "This is dealing with a private financial matter which has nothing to do with my post as state minister," wrote Bouffier last week to the SPD faction in response to a questions about his real estate business with a professed Scientologist from Zwickau. He also expressed himself similarly on the theme on Thursday morning in one of the question and answer sessions demanded by the opposition in the State Assembly. In reality, the Minister, who has already been accused of "treason to the party" and "back-door affairs," has not separated his private and work matters quite so clearly. That is proved by a letter which Bouffier filed against Kurt Fliegerbauer, the Zwickau Scientologist, in charges in the Zwickau state attorney's office on February 23rd of this year. The letter, of which the FR has a copy, is authored on the official letterhead paper of the Minister with Hesse's coat of arms, agency address and post description of "State Minister, Hessian Ministry of the Interior and for Sports." Bouffier admitted that this afternoon when asked by the FR. He said he had "inadvertently" had the charges prepared on ministry paper even though the charge was being filed by him "as a private man."

Fliegerbauer is the business manager of the Osterstein Castle company in Zwickau. That is where Bouffier, Justice Minister Christean Wagner (CDU) and CDU faction chairman Norbert Kartmann got involved with tax-favored real estate business which had an alleged total value of more than three million marks in November, 1996. By then, the Osterstein Castle chief had already been repeatedly accused of membership in Scientology. Bouffier, Wagner and Kartmann assert that they had not heard anything about that. At that time, the three were arguing vehemently in the Hessian State Assembly to have the group, which is structured like a cult, put under surveillance by Constitutional Security, because it was known that Scientology worked with extremely shady methods in trying to infiltrate companies and putting massive pressure on members who wanted to leave.

Bouffier stated yesterday that in 1996 he was not aware of who managed the Osterstein company. He said the sales contract had been consummated through a financial consulting firm and the Bavarian Vereins Bank. It was not until September 1997 that he had read in the newspaper that a Scientologist managed the company. He had requested Fliegerbauer to take a position on the accusations. So the investor verified for him, in writing, that there was nothing to the accusations.

Bouffier would have been able to get better information from his party comrades in Zwickau: Hessian Broadcasting reported that, by February 1996, the CDU-led city administration had stated that it would not sell any more property to Fliegerbauer. In any case, the businessman asked Bouffier for help in 1999, because he felt he was being persecuted by Zwickau CDU members because of his membership in Scientology. The Minister said he rebuffed Fliegerbauer's request.

Fliegerbauer then suspended the guaranteed rental payments for the eastern real estate he had agreed upon with Bouffier because of what he said was a lack of help. Bouffier filed charges for breach of trust - on his ministry paper. SPD and Greens have criticized Bouffier for not clearly maintaining his distance in his cooperation with the Scientologist. Bouffier countered that it would not have been possible to get out of the contract without taking a loss if he only used the argument that his partner in the contract was a member of Scientology.

Controversy over realty business with Scientologist

Wiesbaden, Germany
March 17, 2000
Frankfurter Neue Presse, 2000

Wiesbaden. Hesse's Interior Minister Volker Bouffier and Justice Minister Christean Wagner (both CDU) were strongly assailed yesterday in the state assembly for doing business with a Scientologist. In 1996 the two ministers bought buildings in Zwickau from a company whose business manager is a Scientologist. The same went for CDU faction chief Norbert Kartmann. The top CDU politicians had indirectly supported an organization under surveillance by Constitutional Security, because in doing business with its member - about 3.7 million marks in the afore-mentioned cases - the Scientology usually receives 15 percent, said Greens Representative Evelin Schoenhut-Keil. Interior Minister Volker Bouffier (CDU) emphasized, in response, that the CDU politicians, at the time of the purchase, had known nothing about the the business manager's membership in Scientology.

Vedic Peace ...

The Vedic Peace Corps has invited the public to attend an "Alternative to Bombing against Terrorism" meeting. Criticism of that is presented in this letter to the editor.

False Hope

Mainz, Germany
October 17, 2001
Main Rheiner Lokales

For some years I have given advice on the exercise of meditation as a classical method of expanding awareness, and I also instruct meditation teachers. Professional trainers, I think of myself as one of them, react with concern and disapproval when daily newspapers, which are used by people in forming their opinions, publish detailed articles that amount to advertising for groups that operate as cults, apparently without having done adequate research on them.

Personal observation and experience give me reason to expressly warn people about the meditative practice of so-called TM groups (Transcendental Meditation). For years, the public have been informed both on radio and television about the risks and dangers of Transcendental Meditation. It is practically to the point where this group is regarded as one of the largest and most questionable cults, next to Scientology.

Instead of "solving conflicts," as promised in your article, the methods of Transcendental Meditation have sometimes had the effect of plunging people into depression or making them sick. Therefore I hope that the Bundestag representatives, who according to the Sept. 25 article were invited to a presentation, are not taken in by this dog and pony show. The event is a case for Constitutional Security!

Gabriela Wolf

Schaul Brothers have to pay for slander

Heilbronn, Germany
July 3, 2001
Heilbronner Stimme
http://www.stimme.de

The Heilbronn City Court has fined the Schaul brothers Hans Juergen and Hans Friedbert. The fine was 250 marks for each of 50 days, making a total of 12,500 marks. This was stated yesterday by Press Judge Frank Haberzettl.

By doing this the court has avenged the Schauls' assertion that an attorney, Mr. Gallandi, was a member of the Scientology sect. Gallandi had represented a capital investor in a civil proceeding in the Heilbronn State Court. The investor had filed a suit for damages against the Innovatio Allfinanz and Immobilen Franchise System AG, whose board of directors were the Schaul brothers. During the lawsuit and in press statements the Schaul brothers had asserted that Gallandi was a "high-ranking Scientologist."

The Heilbronn City Court had filed charges against the Schauls for attempted trial fraud. The state attorney's office had originally charged the Schauls with deceiving the court with the Scientology assertions at Gallandi's application for a cease and desist order, stated Haberzettl.

But that charge has now been dropped.

The proceedings against the Schauls' attorney, Hans Guenther Lueth - also for attempted trial fraud - were also provisionally dropped by the city court for a security deposit. The proceedings were to be dropped for good when Hans Guenther Lueth has transferred a financial contribution to a charitable institution.

Plauen: Ehri-construction company comes to a dubious end

Ex-Plauen corporation transfers offices to Thueringen and files for bankruptcy

Cooperating with Scientology

Plauen, Germany
April 10, 2001
Freie Presse
http://www.freiepresse.de

Frank Ehrlich and his Ehri-company groups appear to have met their end. For weeks the telephones at the company headquarters on Reich Street in Plauen have not been answered. At the new offices in Zeulenroda the telephones are continually busy. On Tuesday the "Freie Presse" took a look at the building which gives anything but the impression of the offices of a construction company.

About a year ago a pornographic book store moved out. Neighbors say they have never noticed anything like a construction company, and Ehrlich hardly seem to be there.

Instead of that there is a little office which contains, besides the Ehri construction company, such fanciful names like "Inter Immo Marketing and Vertrieb GmbH" as well as "Strucco Import Export GmbH". The office was sparsely furnished, just enough for a woman who stopped people at the door and, for contact to Ehrlich, gave out a Plauen telephone number which turned out to be that of a jewelry store. This verified the rumors of the Ehri failure. Siegfried Christ, the city court director, said on Tuesday that bankruptcy had been filed for the Ehri construction conglomerate. The temporary executor is the Erfurt attorney Harald Hess. As reported by that office, the documents are currently being perused.

Frank Ehrlich's Ehri-firms worked time and time again with Zwickau real estate tycoon and top Scientologist Kurt Fliegerbauer. Other interesting cross-connections exist. In recent times Ehrlich was repeatedly brought into connection with building plans in which sub-contractors felt they had been gypped out of money and for which they had effectively, publicly protested. One example is the renovation of a building at 80 Karola Street in Plauen. Among those suffering loss who now may hardly hope to get their debts are, besides numerous construction laborers, a major construction company from Reichenbach, Mueller & Streit, Inc.

The Chemnitz state attorney has confirmed that several charges against Frank Ehrlich are outstanding.

Nobody is offering 5.8 million marks to the artist who lives in Ireland and the USA

[Editorial follows]

Burgbrohl, Germany
April 4, 2001
http://www.general-anzeiger-bonn.de

Ahrweiler County (Irs) Gottfried Helnwein the artist has not been finding any buyers for his castle in Burgbrohl. He's been asking 5.8 million marks for it for the past two years. "He's insisting on that. If he really wanted to sell it, he would've done so long ago," said Carl-Josef Weiler, the local mayor.

Gisela Pracht, the Cologne real estate broker who has been tending the buildings for two years, described Helnwein's asking price as "too high." She said there was a whole string of people interested in buying the buildings, which are situated in an old park with about 2,000 square meters of living and utility space. Every one of them offered a lower price, though.

The 52-year-old Helnwein made headline after headline as an alleged hood ornament of the Scientology sect. In 1998 however, the Federal Constitutional Court released a decision whereby the artist may no longer be described as "Scientologist or clergyman of the Scientology sect." According to Weiler's information, the resulting hostilities from Burgbrohl's neighboring areas had driven the painter, concept artist and photographer out of Germany several years ago. Now he is said to be living in Ireland and in the USA. The mayor said that he did not think the father of four children was a Scientology adherent. "I'd have preferred that he stay here," concluded Weiler.

Helnwein lived in Burgbrohl for about 15 years and had the Baroque castle renovated at great expense. Soon rumors surfaced that Scientology courses were being offered there. According to the "Verbandsgemeinde Brohital" however, that had never been proven.

Among other things Helnwein was known for the 1981 album cover of the "Scorpions" rock group. He gained a wide audience with his cover pictures for magazines like "Time," "Spiegel," and "Playboy." In the course of his career the artists exhibited portraits of abused children, painted himself as a martyr and produced stage scenery.

Mellenthin, Germany
November 24, 2000
Nordkurier-Online 2000

Mellenthin (EB/J. Bengs). "With that the last doubts as to the professionalism of the owner-builder of the new estate of Mellenthin are removed": this was the aspect taken by Mayor Diethelm Wiedemann after a project was introduced during the most recent community representative session. Although the renovation of an old farm into a Christian recreation center for families with children has already made good progress, the representatives wanted to know first-hand with whom they were really dealing. The starting point for the clarification was a rumor that the investors possibly could include members of the Scientology sect.

The people in question attempted to defuse that with clear and open language. As Michael Korts reported, he got a brainstorm when he discovered this beautiful farm in front of the Mellenthin Castle during his vacation there two years ago. That, in his family's opinion, would be the right place for a plan which they had been mulling over for years. In short order they sold their own property near Cologne and made their way to Usedom. With the proceeds from their sale, additional credit in the amount of 1.5 million marks and some promotion, he wanted to be running a hotel, a boarding house and vacation rooms by next spring, he added.

"In our plans to build a Christian vacation center in Mellenthin we, of course, had no idea of what had happened on the island before. We knew nothing about Scientology, either," his wife Cornelia added. She emphasized that they were entirely normal Christians, although they did not belong to the Evangelical state church, but were non-denominational members of the Baptist community of Cologne-West.

Asked for his opinion by the mayor, Pastor Friedrich von Kymmel responded, "When the newspaper says that people intend to build a Christian center in Mellenthin but the local Christians were not contacted, then there is concern about a possible sect." After a "serious breach of trust" in the Wolgast district he was also concerned that other congregation members could be drawn into the non-denominational church. They didn't want to practice that in Mellenthin, stressed Korts.

---

Farm in front of the Mellenthin Water Castle being put to use

Mellenthin, Ostvorpommern (EB/jobe). The farm in front of the Mellenthin Water Castle is supposed to turn into a Christian recreation center for families with children. Yet there were rumors that the owner-builder family from Cologne could be members of the Scientology sect. After the latest community representative session though, probably the last doubts as to the professionalism of the new owners have been removed and Mayor Diethelm Wiedemann has shown his satisfaction: Michael Korts participated in a question and answer session with the representatives.

As he reported, his family got the brainstorm on vacation two years ago when they saw the farm in front of the Mellenthin Castle: they had been talking about a Christian recreation center for years - and every building seemed suited to them from the onset.

So they sold their own property in Cologne in short order; with the proceeds, an additional loan in the amount of 1.5 million marks and promotion material "we intend to be running a hotel, a boarding house and vacation residences starting spring of next year," stated the Korts. His wife Cornelia reported that the family belonged to the non-denominational Baptist congregation in Cologne-West.

Complaint against Church dismissed

Neumarkt, Germany
October 27, 2000
Neumarkter Nachrichten

Neumarkt/Nuernberg (ih) - Psychotherapists Guenter "Seppo" Schleicher and Leonhard Oesterle sued for about three million marks in damages in a civil chamber of the Nuernberg-Fuerth State Court. Grounds for the suit were statements by sect commissioner Ludwig Lanzhammer which they said harmed their business and reputations. Presiding judge Dietrich Drechsel unequivocally dismissed their complaint in his decision.

The disagreements between the two psychotherapists and the church, as told by Ludwig Lanzhammer, the sect commissioner of the Bamberg Archdiocese, went back to 1990. Back then Lanzhammer made statements to the media that Schleicher's and Oesterle's clientele were "definitely a psycho-sect."

In the vicinity of the Deining community in Neumarkt county, the two men offered, among other things, a "new type of concept in horse-riding and vacations which combined psychotherapy and horse-riding in an enhancing manner," as it said in a newspaper article. In contrast to that, a man who had participated in the arrangements said that the men all wore long leather jackets and riding boots and the women were dressed in white blouses and leather skirts - like a uniform. He said that Schleicher's words and deeds were "accepted in reverence."

The information he got from this man and others indicated, in Lanzhammer's opinion, that this could be regarded as a psycho-sect. That was the opinion he stated. In the years that followed, as Schleicher and Oesterle were now complaining, reference to those statements was made over and over by the sect commissioner and by the media.

Very harmful for business

The two psychotherapists were of the opinion that the assessment by the sect commissioner - and thereby the church - had been very harmful for their business. The did not get training contracts after that and their business contacts broke off. The estimated the total damages at about three million marks.

All they sued for, however, was 120,000 marks damages and recompensation. Schleicher and Oesterle were represented by an attorney known nationwide, Professor Martin Kriele, who authored an almost 150-page complaint for them. In it he took the opinion that the church, represented by its sect commissioner, had gone too far in this case. "The whole thing is a picture of delusion" like the witch trials, according to Professor Kriele.

Not illegal

Judge Dietrich Drechsel very clearly dismissed the complaint in his decision. He said in the grounds that the sect commissioner's statements were not illegal and were justified. The church had the same right as a private person to question and to take a position of general interest. An expression of opinion was not an assertion of fact. Ludwig Lanzhammer was completely within his bounds as even the church absolutely may be definitive and critical, and in individual cases even polemic.

This was the first hearing, and in it the complaint by Schleicher and Oesterle were dismissed. Because Schleicher also attributes his partial paralysis to the long-gone words of the church, a second hearing can be expected. The possibility exists of filing an appeal and the next hearing going to the Nuernberg Superior State Court.

Freya's (19) mysterious death

Drowned at home

Father succumbed to cult madness

Freya was just 19 when the doctor on emergency duty was called to her death on December 25, 1999. When the medical technician entered the room, a feeling of misgiving came over him. The Bach cantata "Oh Haupt voll Blut und Wunden" boomed deafeningly throughout the house in the small village near Forcheim.

Jakobus N., the father of the deceased, stood motionlessly in the room as did his son Nils (18) - no tears or sign of sorrow. The doctor called the police. The autopsy showed that Freya N. had drowned. Nine months later her death is still unexplained and the state attorney's office is investigating. Early yesterday the police took Jakobus N. away in handcuffs - the man was committed to the psychiatric ward as a public menace. That is because Jakobus N. succumbed to cult madness. He subjected his family to methods of torture for years. For instance, he tortured his wife Carla (name changed) by drenching her with cold water. The 60-year-old woman said, "What if he had done the same thing with Freya?"

On that December day after Freya's death, Jakobus N. gave the police investigators a letter written by her: "Early this morning I took another ten-minute cold bath" his daughter jotted down the morning of the day she died. How many 19-year-old girls voluntarily take a cold bath in winter? And jot it down? Freya's mother, Carla N. (60) has some answers. She fled to the Nuernberg house for women in 1997 after years of torture. When the mother, a painter, met her future husband of 24 years, he was a member of the Scientology sect. Jakobus' life goal was to rise to the top of the sect hierarchy, but he was thwarted by the sect leaders.

During that time, Freya and Nils were born, then Flavia in 1983. At that time the family was living near Heidelberg. Even though the frail baby had caught a cold and could barely breath, Jakobus forbade calling a doctor or using nose drops. Carla obeyed. Ten days after its birth the child died of asphyxiation. The doctor attested to the sudden death of the child.

He [Jakobus] later disseminated his deluded concepts via the internet, "He thought L. Ron Hubbard wanted to annihilate him from the great beyond," was how Carla described his state of mind. Freya had to redo those internet pages every day.

While Carla N. managed to escape to the women's home, the children stayed with their father. Shortly after Freya's death, the state attorney applied for a warrant for the arrest of the father - however the magistrate did not see a pressing need of suspicion. Jakobus N. stayed free and the police looked for evidence.

"Did Jakobus torture her to death? A question the mother has been asking herself ever since. Friedrich Kraus, the Bamberg leading state attorney, is also investigating the case of Freya's death.

---

[This, it is assumed, is how OSA reported the same article on a.r.s.]

From: ARS_incites_hate_member at newsguy.com
Subject: FLASH!!! Critic arrested on suspicion of murder
Date: 25 Sep 2000 00:00:00 GMT
Message-ID: 8qo6h502rgv@drn.newsguy.com
Organization: Newsguy News Service [http://www.newsguy.com]
Newsgroups: alt.religion.scientology

This is a story Tilman failed to report.

Koos Nolst Trenite taken by police for suspected murder....

A friend in Munich sent me this translation of an article in Abendzeitung on September 22, 2000. The names have been changed to hide the identity of the family, but "Jakobus N" can only be Koos. This tragic event, was the result of a deranged mind driven to violence by the hate spread on a.r.s.

ABENDZEITUNG 22.09.2000

THE MYSTERIOUS DEATH OF FREYA

Did the father kill the nineteen year old?

Freya N. was only 19 years old when the ambulance was called to her death on the 25th of December 1999. When the medical man entered the room, a bad feeling came over him: In the whole house in the small village near Forchheim, the song "Oh Haupt voll Blut und Wunden" (Oh Head full of blood and wounds) by Bach resounded deafeningly.

The father of the deceased, Jakobus N., and his son Nils (18) were standing motionless in the room -- no crying, no sorrow. The doctor called the police. The autopsy established that Freya N. had drowned. Three quarters of a year later, her death is still considered unsolved and the public prosecutor is investigating.

Yesterday morning, the police picked Jakobus N. up in handcuffs -- he was sent to a psychiatric clinic because he was considered to be a public menace.

For several years, his family was subject to his methods of torture. He tortured his wife Carla (named changed) with gushes of cold water. The 60 year old: "What if he has done the same to Freya?"

On that day in December, after Freya's death, Jakobus N. gave a letter, written by Freya, to the criminal police: "This morning, I took another cold bath of the minutes," his daughter had written the morning of the day of her death. Which 19 year old voluntarily takes a cold bath in winter? And notes that down? The answers can be found with Carla N., Freya's mother. After years of torture, she took refuge in the womens' house in Nurnberg in 1997. When the artist met her husband 24 years ago, he was a member of the Scientology sect. Jakobus' life goal, to move up in the sect hierarchy, was however prevented by sect leaders.

In that time, Freya and Nils were born, and in 1983, Flavia. At that time, the family was living in Heidelberg. When the weak baby was sick and could hardly breathe, Jakobus forbid calling a doctor or using nose drops, and Carla obeyed. Ten days after her birth, the child suffocated. The doctor attested the sudden death of the child. In the Internet, he later distributes his delusion. "L. Ron Hubbard was trying to kill him hereafter," Carla N. describes his frame of mind. Freya had to update the web pages daily. Carla N. succeeded in running away to the women's house, and the children remained with the father. Just after Freya's death, the public prosecutor proposed the father be arrested. Jakobus N. remains in freedom, the police were searching for evidence.

"Did Jakobus N. torture her to death?" a question the mother has been asking herself over and over since then. The senior public prosecutor Friedrich Kraus is still investigating the death of Freya.

A father in cult rage

sub-text: Jakobus N. did not resist as he was brought to the police wagon. The police brought him in for psychiatric evaluation. photo: Manu Meyer

Nuernberg, Germany
September 22, 2000
Nuernberger Abendzeitung

Torture, terror and death

Why did Freya (19) drown in the bath tub

Freya was just 19 when the doctor on emergency duty was called to her death on December 25, 1999. When the medical technician entered the room, a feeling of misgiving came over him. The Bach cantata "Oh Haupt voll Blut und Wunden" boomed deafeningly throughout the house in the small village near Forchheim.

Jakobus N. (51), the father of the deceased, stood motionlessly in the room as did his son Nils (18). No tears or sign of sorrow. A victim of drugs? The doctor looked for puncture marks on the naked body of the girl. "When I touched her I could only think, My God is she cold!" No puncture marks; the doctor called the police. The autopsy showed that Freya N. had drowned. But the circumstances are not clear.

Nine months later her death is still unexplained and the state attorney's office is investigating. Early yesterday the police took the Dutchman Jakobus N. away from his house in handcuffs. The man was committed to the psychiatric ward as a public nuisance. That is because Jakobus N. succumbed to cult madness. He subjected his wife and children to methods of torture for years. For instance, he tortured his wife Carla (name changed) by drenching her with cold water. The 60-year-old woman said, "What if he had done the same thing with Freya?"

On that December day after Freya's death, Jakobus N. gave the police investigators a letter written by her: "Early this morning I took another ten-minute cold bath" his daughter jotted down the morning of the day she died. How many people voluntarily take a cold bath in winter? And jot it down? Freya's mother, Carla N. (60) has some answers. She fled to the Nuernberg house for women in 1997 after years of torture. When the mother, a painter, met her future husband of 24 years, he was a member of the Scientology sect. (Some prominent members are actors John Travolta, Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman.) Jakobus' life goal was to rise to the top of the sect hierarchy, but he was thwarted by the sect leaders.

Jakobus founded an art organization and wanted to promote painters. At the same time he was trying to get a foothold back with the cult, which further frustrated him. He began contriving his own picture of the world.

In the course of the years, the man continued to be plagued with delusions. For instance, Carla N. was supposed to recognize who was telephoning as soon as it rang. When her telepathic powers would fail her, her husband perceived that as an attack; he thought that Carla did not want to support him and was against him - whatever that meant.

During that time, Freya and Nils were born, then Flavia in 1983. At that time the family was living near Heidelberg. Even though the frail baby had caught a cold and could barely breathe, Jakobus forbade calling a doctor or using nose drops. Carla obeyed as she always did. Ten days after its birth the child died of asphyxiation. The doctor attested to the sudden death of the child.

First attempts at escape failed

"When he asked what had happened I couldn't say anything - I was so intimidated and and blamed myself horribly." She says by that time she was often trying to escape her husband. The attempts failed. He found her and promised that everything would be different.

It was different - it got worse. The hells of the cult madness peaked in the following scene: "Shivering from fear and cold, close to passing out, for two to three hours I had to stand in the bathroom while he threw bucket after bucket of cold water at me at one minute intervals." The Dutchman perceived the torture as therapy. When he wanted to "purify" his wife or "punish" her, when she dared look at him - in his opinion - cock-eyed, when she resisted. Whatever she did, she was always "harming" him. His "therapy" also included beating with a 5-foot stick, kicking and throwing down the stairs. She lost track of the abuse in which a finger and nose were broken, her lip was split several times and she had concussion.

So intimidated that she almost thought of her situation as normal, and she remained with the father of her children. They also suffered under their father. They had to disconnect from their friends; the father forbade any contact to people of their own age. Freya was inducted as a secretary to her father. With her help, he used the internet to spread his deluded ideas. "L. Ron Hubbard, the founder of the Scientologists, became his greatest enemy: although Hubbard was dead, he said Hubbard was trying to annihilate him from the great beyond," wrote Carla N. on the mental state of her husband. "L. Ron Hubbard, Jakobus thinks, wants to start the Third World War." In order to avoid that, Jakobus N. thereafter proclaimed himself "Ambassador to Mankind." His daughter Freya had to update his internet pages every day; she wouldn't sit down at the computer until after she had taken two hours dictation from her father. That was when she was 14.

Son was assigned to watch his mother

Carla N. earned the family's money by selling her paintings in the pedestrian zones of Nuernberg. Until 1997, Jakobus' delusions visibly increased: "Not only L. Ron Hubbard, but now I wanted to annihilate him, too." He inducted the children for the mother's punishment: "They had to fetch the stick, beat me and torture me by throwing water at me." If they would have defended themselves they might not have been safe, even before the punishment. The children responded that they were not used to it any other way.

Nils was detailed to guard his mother when she went shopping. "If I would have hinted that I wanted to make a break for it, Nils would have called his father. He would have simply obeyed.

On October 17, she managed to escape to the women's home from the pedestrian zone. Why did she not immediately go to the police? "I was terrified of his revenge. Besides that I thought he would treat the children better than he did me." Physical violence, she told herself, had not been experienced by the children to date - the mother got used to even worse psycho-terrorism than that under which the children suffered. Now she blames herself for that.

Carla N. made a new life for herself and hoped that things were going good for her children. But in 1999 she got a call from the landlord of the house in Mittelfranken. The elderly gentleman described a visit to Jakobus N. in November 1999 because he had not been paying his rent for months: classical music was turned up too loud in the house; Freya - then 19 - was sitting at the table in fear, the musical torment was also in her room. "Turn it down so we can talk." Freya refused; only her father could turn down the volume. Appalled, the man went to the Health Office in Forchheim the same day.

The female doctor there knew that the family's relations were anything but normal. An academic and a psychiatrist were sent to the house. Nobody answered the door and the officials left. One month later, on Nils' 18th birthday, Freya drowned in the bath tub. The state attorney applied for an arrest warrant, but the investigating magistrate did not see adequate suspicion that Jakobus was at fault. He remained free and the police looked for more proof. "Did Jakobus torture her to death?" A question the mother is still asking herself. Friedrich Kraus, the chief state attorney, is also continuing his investigation in Freya's case.

It seems as if the case is taken care of for the Forchheim Health Office by Freya's death. Nils remains exposed to his father's madness. The reason is that the boy is of age, besides that he had no objection to his living conditions. Whether or not he could defend himself against these conditions does not seem to have occurred to anyone. And: because of the tight commitment laws, it is difficult to have the father psychiatrically evaluated.

Judge steps in: father now in the psychiatric ward

But now that's happened. N's internet pages are now monitored by the health office. And when it shortly appeared there that Nils, from his father's view, was "destroyed by the devil," the case workers intervened: the expert for commitment summed it up succinctly: the first victim, the mother Carla, escaped by fleeing. The second victim, daughter Freya, dead. The third victim was now possessed by the devil: "I've handled by registered mail." Early yesterday the fire department broke the door down and police took Jakobus away. From the house droned loud classical music.

The evaluation resulted in Jakobus N. being committed to a psychiatric ward. Nils, however, is free. Perhaps he'll find his way back with psychological help.

"Virgin" of Idstein in Scientology

SPD dragged its feet on expelling Birgit W. from party

Idstein, Germany
September 13, 2000
MainRheiner

Idstein (cc) "Mary was the only person born without original sin," says Elisabeth Schulz from Valley near Munich. The religious sensitivities of the devout Catholic were breached recently as Idstein judge Fritz Henge admitted testimony making a reference to Mary's immaculate conception in the birth of an illegitimate child. Now she wants the state attorney's office to check to see whether the evidence available suffices for charges against Henge.

He had refused to open proceedings against Birgit W. She had been charged for making a false statement not under oath because, in a civil lawsuit, she had claimed that she had only had sexual intercourse with her husband. A DNA test proved, however, that the youngest child did not come from him. In response to that, Birgit W. revealed that it could have come about by necking [sic] with a stranger, which would make it a virgin conception. Judge Henge did not want to rule that out as "the cultural history of the Christian Occident" was founded on that concept to a "not inconsiderable" degree.

Up until recently, Birgit W. was a member of the SPD and, as such, was a problem for her political party. That is because, back in 1996, the Frankfurt Superior State Court believed that the woman from Idstein, "in spite of her statements to the contrary, was operating in concert with the Scientologists' organization." For instance, not only was Birgit W. the business manager of the Moewe Publishers in Huenstetten, which publishes books by Scientology authors. She was also connected with Horst Mehler, the chief business manager of the publishing house, a Scientologist of some rank - their relationship was decisive in the failure of her marriage in July 1998.

The SPD had known about her affiliation with Scientology for years. Wolfhard W., her former husband, said he talked about it for the first time in 1995 with sub-district chairman Werner Schuster. In September 1997, he wrote Renate Rennebach, the party sect commissioner, "Since the SPD has an incompatibility statement as concerns Scientology, I would like for you to tell me how this is possible."

The SPD has been surprisingly slow in expelling Birgit W. from the party. Two years ago she was given a statement to sign whereby she was to have affirmed that she had no close connection with the sect, said Dietrich Schnellbach, chairman of an internal party arbitration committee. Birgit W. was suspended because she did not want to sign the document.

A couple of days ago, he asked Birgit W. again to take a position on her relationship to Scientology, said Schnellbach. It was too late; Birgit W. wanted to leave the party long ago - several months after she had co-signed on a piece of real estate in Idstein's downtown with SPD Federal Representative Schuster. The property has since then been notarially separated. Birgit lives in one half and in the other half Schuster and his wife are building a residence for handicapped people.

A woman functionary of the Scientology Organization sued because she was terminated from the Heilbronn District Savings Bank - settled in court.

Heilbronn, Germany
March 14, 2000
Heilbronner Stimme

by Martin Hennings

The tip from a customer was handled promptly by the Heilbronn District Bank: because Regine W., a bank officer in the bank's securities department, was involved with the Scientology Organization as a high-ranking functionary, she was dismissed without notice.

The 47 year old woman sued in the Heilbronn Labor Court. Yesterday, both sides agreed on a settlement in court: the termination without notice was changed to a regular termination. Besides that, Regine W. received a settlement of 60,000 marks.

From the District Savings Bank's point of view, Regine W. is no "small fry" in Scientology. According to the association register, she is recorded in Heilbronn as the presiding President. She herself declared that she holds the position of "chaplain" and said that she holds services weekly.

There were several reasons for the District Savings Bank to let W. go when they became aware of her Scientology activities. For instance, the organization is being observed by Constitutional Security because of a suspicion that it is following goals hostile to the Constitution.

All staff at the District Savings Bank, to which the principles of public service apply, must profess the liberal democratic system of Basic Law. In addition, the female officer was said to be a "security risk" for the bank because Scientology requires its members everywhere to gather information. The securities department is one of the most sensitive areas.

Finally, it would harm the bank's image if it were revealed that a high-ranking Scientology activist worked there. When the bank became aware of the accusations against W., she was required to distance herself in writing from the methods of the Scientology Organization. She did not do that.

The dismissed officer's attorney argued that W., in her free time, was involved with a "religious association." Scientology was not considered as an organization in this case, but only as something belonging to the person of W. The attorney argued that "prejudice against Scientology which had been uncritically accepted" was being applied to his client in a small degree.

The legal representative of the District Savings Bank referred to the report by Constitutional Security and described Scientology's mental wares as "contemptuous of people." At the same time the Savings Bank made it clear that it wanted to have done with the matter quickly and for good. After a short break in the hearings, the two sides agreed on the settlement.

Fear of Scientology in Ballet Class

Pliening, Germany
March 2, 2000
Muenchner Merkur

Pliening - Out of a fear of Scientology, numerous parents in Pliening (Ebersberg County) have taken their six to ten year old children out of ballet class. They are convinced that the female instructor (not named) is being actively observed by Constitutional Security. "It is right at this age that children are easy to manipulate," said a father. However there is no proof that Scientology plays a role in ballet instruction. Because the teacher has flown to America. The woman is said to be known to the authorities because she allegedly appeared at the Marienplatz in Munich with another ballet group at a Scientology gathering. Several parents have seen pictures published of it. According to our information, Constitutional Security is already involved with the case. The community council has already withdrawn permission for the use of a gymnastics room in the school basement by the ballet group - the official reason was to avoid a flood of like applications.

Hannes Sch[x]ll

Teacher taken in by guru

[This was a series of letters about a school teacher (Gudrun Seehaus) who got taken in by a mighty guru (Hannes Sch[x]ll). It contained only a brief mention of Scientology.]

Here is the latest update from the psychoguru. Apparently there was some sort of dispute between Renate Hartwig and Hannes Sch[x]ll. Hannes Sch[x]ll is very proud of the fact that he sued, as documented by Munich Superior Court document 19 U 5561/00, 9 O 3123/00 LG Munich. This may have to do with the fact that he won. Mr. Sch[x]ll likes to point out this fact to people with whom he disagrees. After that, the following summary can only be an anti-climax, but here it is, anyway . . .

In response to Mr. Hannes Sch[x]ll's counter-point of February 16, 2000, the writers of this letter to the editor said that Mr. Sch[x]ll referred to the commentary of the Jueterbog Echo of February 10, 2000 and that Mr. Sch[x]ll had disputed that adherents were led into "sexual slavery, financial dependency and destruction of their personality."

The authors of this particular letter said that it was known that there were women among Hannes Sch[x]ll's circles of acquaintances and staff members who, because of emotional dependencies, were summoned to have sexual relations and had to sign a "vow of silence until death." The authors concluded that even today seminar participants are still being led to psychic borderline experiences. They also stated that could lead to deep emotional and psychic dependencies.

With regard to Scientology, the connection to which Mr. Sch[x]ll most stridently objects, the authors wrote words in German which might be interpreted in English as follows:

Regarding the teacher Gudrun Seehaus' article, the following question is asked: what, dear parents and students, would you say to a self-experience course by Scientology? It is irresponsible even to recommend a person to Sch[x]ll Training; Hannes Sch[x]ll was also a student and long-term staff member of Scientology student Werner Erhard (Founder of Landmark/EST), and can be described as a "psychoguru with totalitarian tendencies." Mrs. Seehaus herself comments that Hannes Sch[x]ll is associated with negative criticism, what's even less understandable is her insistence on a seminar. She apparently is in no way aware of the responsibility which she has to her students.

The letter was signed by
Inge and Burkhardt Vancoillie
Beate and Andreas Stoeffer
Oliver Degel
Helke and Carsten Koulakiotis
- former staff and participants -

This is a special note for people whose judgment has been adversely affected for one reason or another, thus decreasing their level of comprehension. The above does not state that Hannes Sch[x]ll was ever a student and long-term staff member of Scientology. It states that Hannes Sch[x]ll was a student and long-term staff member of Scientology student Werner Erhard (Founder of Landmark/EST). It also states that Mr. Sch[x]ll can be described as a "psychoguru with totalitarian tendencies." Those statements are presented as the opinion of the signers of the letter, who seem to be performing a public service for the community.

"Groundless Suspicions"

Fulda, Germany
February 11, 2000
Fuldaer Zeitung Politik

Fulda (ryt)
Rumors spread behind closed doors are making business for several companies in Fulda difficult: "Haven't you heard? They're working with Scientology!" In that or a similar way is how most of the whispering campaigns start which harm business.

In the past two years, seven companies have sought advice from Reverend Ferdinand Rauch, sect commissioner of Fulda diocese, or he has visited them, because rumors of that type came to their attention.

The Fitness Company in Fulda's Von Schildeck Center has also visited the sect commissioner about rumors of this type, said the company's press agent, Martin Seibold. Rauch offers companies a prepared sworn statement which will "stand up in court," said the sect commissioner. In it the company affirms that it does not operate according to the methods of L. Ron Hubbard, and that it fully rejects these methods. The company guarantees that it does not organize any training, courses or seminars according to those methods and that it hinders any distribution of those teachings. Furthermore, the company states that it maintains no business relationship to persons, firms or organizations which support or spread Hubbard's methods. However, if the company belongs to the Scientologists and lies, then its staff can bring it to court with the sworn statement, said Rauch.

"95 percent of the suspicions are groundless," Rauch said from experience. In the Fulda bishopric's area, there are only several private individuals who have fallen into the clutches of the psycho-sect, as far as he knows. He does not know of any east Hessian companies who apply Hubbard's methods.

According to Rauch, companies are unjustly suspected because specific Scientology expressions apply to the language of business. He said it is frightening what power slander has, "it can cost a company its business," said the sect commissioner. Companies who sign these kind of statements very probably have made a clean breast of it, verified Scientology expert Renate Hartwig (Augsburg) to an FZ inquiry.

Martin Seibold of the Fitness Company assumes that it would be primarily companies which follow an American philosophy of business which would be affected by this type of defamation. When one then expands as quickly as the "Fitness Company Freizeitanlagen GmbH Frankfurt," then the rumor pot boils over. The insinuations about the Fitness Company have also made their way to other major cities, stated Seibold. Libel is also a means used to hinder competition. 50 percent of the business shares are held by Fitness First, the English operator, as well as business managers Marcel Franke and Jim McGoldrick. Nationwide there are 22 studios, in England 60.

Helnwein

Scientology and the Artist

Mainz, Germany
February 7, 2000
Report Mainz
http://www.swr-online.de/report/aktuell/index.html

It is normal for our reporters not to be welcomed everywhere they go with open arms. Those who have something to hide answer in monosyllables and shy away from television. What happened to our camera man Mark Bunker in Florida, however, was more than just a cool reception.

In front of the house in which renowned artist and alleged Scientologist Gottfried Helnwein was presumed to be, the team was actually attacked and the camera was damaged by blows from a hammer.

My colleagues, Hans-Michael Kassel and Peter Reichelt, sought indices of Helnwein's relationship to Scientology.

R E P O R T

[film]:

• "Get out of here."
• "We are here on a public street."
• "Well so am I. You want to film me? I'll show you."

The attacker, whose name is listed on Scientology lists, armed with his hammer, disappeared back into the house afterward. According to our information, that is where Gottfried Helnwein lived.

What had happened? Several weeks before. Clearwater, Florida. Palm Bluff Street. We find the place where Gottfried Helnwein is staying. We are amazed. Famous Helnwein posters were lying before the front door, soaked by rain. Some evidence, at least, that we had the right place. He apparently retreated to Clearwater. Germany, as he publicly declared, had become unbearable for him. His statement from years past:

voiceover, Gottfried Helnwein

"I have never before known such an inhospitable, aggressive and malicious country."

"It goes about shutting someone out of society completely. There is a condition, and that is what is to be brought about. That is to make someone socially dead."

The cry of an agonized artist's soul, or a coolly calculated provocation against Germany, his homeland of choice for over a decade? Helnwein was "everybody's darling." His pictures brought the highest prices, in spite of, or perhaps because, they primarily depicted gruesomely wounded or mutilated people.

The picture changed, however, as the 1990s began. His exhibitions were no longer being solemnly praised; they landed in the cross fire. An accusation hung in the air: the artist was said to be a Scientologist. The charge was followed by prompt denials.

voiceover, Gottfried Helnwein

"I do not have any office, any post, any function or any active membership in any kind of sect, especially not with Scientology. This is sworn testimony."

Helnwein not a Scientologist? He has mobilized prominent backers. In October '96 for example, the Parliamentary Vice President on the "Boulevard Bio" talk show:

voiceover, Antje Vollmer, B'90/the Greens, Federal Parliamentary Vice President:

"So, with me this really is also a little bit about this [German] republic. And I am getting involved in this case, because my picture of this republic's civility does really not allow for a person like Gottfried Helnwein to have to leave the country. I would not like that."

The press spokeswoman for Scientology herself could not have put it more eloquently. The memorable appearance on Biolek caused an uproar among German Scientologists. The highest ranking former member of past years still gets animated as she recalled the moment.

voiceover, Dagmar Hopp, former Scientology member:

"He was a top level Scientologist, known to us all. Therefore I was also enraged when I saw that broadcast with Mr. Biolek, how Scientology had totally lied."

Clearwater, Florida, the Mecca of the Scientologists, called "Flag." A former top staff member from Flag knows Helnwein only as a Scientologist.

Question: Was it in any way questionable that Helnwein was a Scientologist?

voiceover, Anita C., former Scientology member:

"No."

Question: Was he well-known?

voiceover, Anita C., former Scientology member:

"Very well known. Also in Flag. The only thing which sometimes disturbed us was when we heard something about he had said on television that he was not a Scientologist. We could not even conceive of that."

This is still not evident to the outside world. Helnwein retreated to his castle in Burgbrohl, Rheinland-Pfalz and provided letters of denial from Scientology. From its [German] President Helmuth Bloebaum, among others. By doing that he led people to believe that he had nothing to do with the self-proclaimed church.

With suitable results:

• An interview in the Scientology "Celebrity" magazine of 1989 - alleged to be counterfeit.
• An article from 1990 describing him as an "auditor, a so-called clergyman - alleged to be counterfeit.
• Lists indicating he was a donor and course graduate - also alleged to be counterfeit.
• Then - probably also counterfeit - his application for lifetime membership from 1987.

Scientology, one may conclude, a one-of-a-kind counterfeiting shop.

Still we found new indices. This previously unknown sales portfolio with Helnwein pictures from 1991, authored and signed personally by him. Countless letters of recommendations from leading Scientologists. They appeared just recently - with former members. The decisive factor is that Helnwein was not to profit at all from the pictures' sales profits - Scientology was. A Scientology prospectus from 1998. The organization thanked generous donors for payments into the so-called "war chest." In the middle of them: Gottfried Helnwein and his wife, Renate. Another counterfeit? If not, then Helnwein's payment has gone to the fight against Scientology opponents. Is that the reason for his stubborn lies?

We checked with someone who would know from experience. Jesse Prince, ex-envoy of Scientology leader David Miscavige. He told us:

voiceover, Jesse Prince, former Scientology member:

"In my opinion that is a covert operation. Namely, get Gottfried away from the organization so that he can attack the people in Germany."

The secret agency, OSA, as they do here in Clearwater, lies in wait for any opportunity to attack Germany. The line is clear: to associate Germany today with Nazi methods. Gottfried Helnwein functions exactly according to this scheme.

voiceover, Gottfried Helnwein:

"I never knew before that there are bloodlines here, that one must produce proof of being an Aryan in order to put on an art exhibit."

That is the exact strategy. Today on the internet, Scientology is parading its statements of alleged discrimination against Scientologists in Germany. Gottfried Helnwein in the role of victim. Quote: "Because he is a Scientologist."

Is Scientology lying? Then Helnwein is being used against his will. We have huge doubts. The indices which we exclusively researched show one thing above all else: Helnwein is standing on the foremost line of a propaganda battle. Deception of the public included. No wonder that he is hiding from us. Another one answers - like this:

film clip:

"Do you want to film me?"

Narrator Bernhard Nellessen:

The legal proceedings on Helnwein's membership in Scientology were to have been rolled out anew in ten days in Frankfurt. Shortly before this broadcast the artist's attorneys told us they had withdrawn their legal complaint.

Narrator:
Bernhard Nellessen

Report: Hans-Michael Kassel Peter Reichelt

Camera: Mark Bunker Hans-Michael Kassel

Editing: Heiko Viehl

related links:
http://www.xenutv.com
Helnwein & Scientology: Lies & Treason by Peter Reichelt

[This contains a brief mention of Scientology.]

New CD

Hartz does everything himself

Hattersheim, Germany
December 28, 1999
Frankfurter Neue Presse

by Thorsten Remsperger

Hattersheim. "Sail away, dream your dream," Hans Hartz says to himself and strikes his tent on the North Sea. The aging hard-rocker wanted to start all over again, so he moved with his girlfriend to Frankfurt and landed in Hattersheim. For one thing, among others, because he is producing his new album there, "Der Wahnsinn blueht" ["Insanity booms"], for another, the man with the raw voice is presenting his new work for the first time in the "Posthofkeller."

That is where he is standing now. With large glasses, a large watch, a large belt buckle and, naturally, long, blond hair. His "white doves are tired" - still, and for that reason the song will probably be re-heated for his new album. Hans Hartz is not at all tired. He will need two to four years until "his baby is born," as he puts it. In the "tough town of Frankfurt" (Hartz), he had a hard time concentrating on his life-like lyrics in his songs, 70 percent of which he wrote and composed himself on his new album. So he had to go to the North Sea. That is why it took so long. Also because he founded his own record label. Hartz now does not have to talk clean at "Double H Records"; he is his own boss. He took over his own production, direction and business.

After his smash hit "Sail Away" in 1991, Hans Hartz' fans had to wait a long time for a new album; less well-known songs like "Nordseewellen sind rau" ('93) and "Das Geisterschiff" ('96) did not bring the same success. He did not have any problems with sales. That is what Hans Hartz said. Record companies like Sony Music and Ariola had scrambled to make an offer, but the contracts were not lucrative enough. Therefore he sold the first 3,000 copies of his CD privately, so to speak, fans can obtain the autographed albums by mail. Hartz does not believe in distributing via the internet. He will be re-negotiating business in the new year.

Hans Hartz was frugal. He did half of the music on his album himself; he played keyboard and guitar. The rest was done by studio musicians in Karben, Offenbach and in Sonic Studio by Achim Herborn in Hattersheim. For the final take he pictures more cooperation. Hartz does not currently have a band. They left him in the lurch in July when he appeared in Posthof, idle gossip even said that the musicians had connections to Scientology. The singer does not want anything to do with them anymore.

Even if, as Hans Hartz states, he has a "turnaround" in his life behind him, he has to, out of necessity, live from his past. He met his girlfriend, Dorith, 16 years ago on tour, "she waited for me," said Hartz. His friend, Hattersheim resident Helmut Mohr, who designed the cover of the new album, was also a fan for years, the two of them telephoned each other frequently and finally met. Hartz would have liked it if Mohr would have taken over management of his label. A couple of loyal fans like Mohr also appeared in the Posthofkeller, including the mayor. Whether or not his music is still with the times and will be accepted by the public, Hans Hartz will find out for himself in the year 2000, when he starts a media tour through Germany.

Business

Investment

"Only plugging holes"

Duesseldorf, Germany
November 8, 1999
Der Spiegel 45/1999

A mayor, a noblewoman and hundreds of other investors fell for a fraudulent scheme concerning bank guaranties. Millions disappeared; now a bank is to compensate for damages.

Psychotherapist [ name deleted ]is used to therapy sessions with her clientele often taking the windy road. Her profession has prepared her for the chasms of the soul. When it came to the chasms of the business world, however, she fell, helplessly.

The therapist came to know Michele Von Neszmely, Austrian by birth, at a seminar on esoterica. The friendship to the Duesseldorf business woman blossomed when Reda inherited over 1.3 million marks.

Neszmely raved, recalls [ name deleted ], of wonderful investment opportunities in Luxemburg in which 80 percent interest per month was said to be possible. Bank guaranties would make such investments a secure business. Unfortunately, large investors had reserved these kind of deals for themselves. But she knew a way around that. "Because you are my friend," [ name deleted ] was allowed to participate in the business and transfer 500,000 marks to Luxemburg.

During that transaction, [ name deleted ] got to know Duesseldorf attorney Axel Gaertner who had paved his way to local fame as the vice president of Fortuna Duesseldorf and, allegedly, was on good terms "with the best people." It was to his bank account in the Duesseldorf branch of the BHF Bank that Reda finally transferred about 900,000 marks, after 80 percent profit had actually been proved in Luxemburg and attracted more dreams of retirement.

But that is when the psychotherapist's luck ran out. The money disappeared from the attorney's bank account. With the help of attractive retirement promises of four percent per week, Gaertner had rigged a giant pyramid investment scheme in which new investors were paying the interest of their predecessors and financing the attorney's lavish life style.

Not just [deleted], but members of "High Society" were also concerned about their money. A German noblewoman brought five transfer slips from Gaertner to the BHF Bank on July 25, 1994. The payments could "not be covered at the time due to a lack of funds," the bank told her laconically.

On January 27, 1995, the day his offices were searched, Gaertner took off for Denmark. It was not until two and a half years later that he was picked up on a flight from Stuttgart to Hamburg, after one of his victims recognized him on the plane. In summer of last year, Gaertner gave a tearful presentation before the Duesseldorf State Court. "I was at my wit's end because of the constant pressure and was only plugging up holes," he said ruefully. The court convicted the attorney of 129 cases of fraud, set the damages at 20 million marks and sentenced him to incarceration for four years and six months.

A mitigating factor in his sentencing was "the victims had made it easy for the accused to put his fraudulent dealings into effect." The investors' money has, for the most part, disappeared. Besides [deleted] and the noblewoman, who lost 1.1 million according to the judgment, a celebrity athlete who lost 140,000 marks was also among the victims

Neszmely was described by the Duesseldorf judge as a loan agent for Gaertner's business. Nevertheless, the lady disappeared and did not give her testimony. [deleted] is sure that her former friend was in on the deal with the deceptive attorney.

In the meantime Neszmely is in custody for extradition in Liechtenstein in another case. The Coblenz state attorney's office has accused her with "accessory to breach of trust in the case of Horst Armbrust." He was the mayor of the Baden-Wuerttemberg community of Neckarwestheim, and put tax money in the amount of 40 million marks mainly into the bank guaranties business.

The village mayor had trusted rumors from investment advisors who had boasted about "superrich grand masters" who were said to be making huge profits in the billions. Armbrust was sentenced to eight and a half years of prison, and has since been released from the Singen prison for seniors.

The community of Neckarwestheim, which had come into a lot of money because of a nuclear power plant, is still trying to get its tax money back. "The millions flowed, presumably, through Switzerland and Liechenstein and then went untraceably to somewhere in the USA," a confused judge assumed.

Possibly Neszmely can give a more exact account when Liechtenstein finally hands over the woman in custody who is being sought for questioning.

During his testimony, Joerg Mehler, financial advisor to the mayor, had described Neszmely as the "driving force" behind the deceptive dealings. Mehler was found guilty by the Coblenz State Court of have defrauded almost 600 investors of more than 60 million marks, and has been in prison for several years.

Only the money and the woman in the background did not reappear. Neszmely sent attestations from hospitals in Sibiera that, unfortunately, she was confined to bed and could not journey to be questioned. Actually the lady was fit as a fiddle and, at the time, was on her way to London.

Now Neszmely will be facing at least four years for fraud in Coblenz. It would be a miracle, though, if the many millions were to reappear. Gaertner, Mehler and the other people who had been caught were all suddenly poor as church mice.

The BHF bank was the address the victims had in common. That is where Gaertner had a back account, and that is where [deleted]'s money went out of when it went to Luxemburg. "Without their cooperation, the fraud would not have functioned," said the psychotherapist - therefore she wants the bank to be legally responsible. She has already attained her first partial success.

The Frankfurt Bank, a good two weeks before [deleted]'s transfer of funds to Luxemburg on May 17, 1994, was already under suspicion of money laundering in the central branch's fight against organized crime. The bank account of its Duesseldorf customer Gaertner, as the BHF Bank wrote, gave evidence of "numerous peculiarities" "which in our view were more than atypical for the bank account of an attorney."

Nevertheless the bank was happy that [deleted] transferred money on June 3 to Gaertner's account, which was significantly overdrawn at the time. The bank had no right to this money, decided the Duesseldorf State Court in summer of this year. It could be assumed that the bank "recognized, or at least could have recognized, the character of foreign money," it said. By this judgment, [deleted] was awarded 550,000 marks plus interest.

The bank wants to contest the decision. If nothing else, other victims could also get the idea of getting their money back from the loan institution.

CHRISTOPH PAULY

Foreign Intelligence Services Found Espionage Companies

Berlin, Germany
July 8, 1999
Die Welt

Concentration of investigation in high technology - Russian intelligence agency officially holds company shares

by Peter Scherer

Mainz - Foreign intelligence services, according to findings by Rheinland-Pfalz Constitutional Security, have even founded their own companies to operate in Germany.

By doing that, foreign espionage enterprises "take an active part in the commercial life of our country." However, the agency would not name names. Posing as business people, intelligence officers attempt to establish "business" and personal contacts with the goal of gathering information on high technology operations, Constitutional Security warned, especially any innovative corporations who do not have a custom designed concept of security in use. There is information in the area of state security from the Federal Criminal Investigative Office (BKA) that one of the Russian secret agencies have appeared "quite officially as a partner in a German marketing firm."

Rheinland-Pfalz Interior Minister Walter Zuber (SPD) estimates that the German economy loses billions of marks through espionage and "brain drain." In times of international competition, therefore, the protection of information for the individual enterprises as well as for the entire economy is more important than ever. For this reason, Zuber establishes a security partnership between state, business and citizen in which Constitutional Security can also act as an advisor.

According to Zuber's information there are currently about 50 companies which are "tended to by secret security." Most of those do business with the defense industry under secret state contracts. Other companies are also targets of investigation for secret foreign agencies, for instance information processing, communications technology, air and space travel, biotechnology and medicine, as well as energy, environment and transportation technology.

The Minister has taken the position that the economy is not only under threat from foreign espionage operations, but also from organizations which are under suspicion of following goals which are hostile to the Constitution. In this regard Constitutional Security named the Scientology organization, which is said to have to goal "of infiltrating the economy." For this purpose it uses the "World Institute of Scientology Enterprises." According to a survey carried out by the Association for Security in the Economy, business can reckon with increasing risk from espionage and criminality in the coming years.

This is Gottfried I-am-not-a-Scientologist Helnwein's daily calendar. Helnwein stated he is unjustly being accused of being a Scientologist. [xxxx] indicates information which has been blacked out of the original. Note: Germans write dates in day.month sequence, so 12.3 symbolizes March 12.

Helnwein Appointment Calendar 1992

12.3. Impact Mag - pull Address because of "patron" letter
20.3. Richard im Freewinds office 9-10 a.m.
22.3. Loredana 6.30 a.m.
23.3. Janet Weiland Meeting Hamburg - Vice Pres. SCN
27.3. 10 a.m. Reed Slatkin
3.4.  call OSA Rainer Weber 
5.4. Adelheid arrives
20.4. Dr.Reinking - because of operating secret for staff member
29.4. call Rainer Weber
16.5. Kurt F. arrives
7.7.  Fly to S.F.
13.7. Mtg. w/ Lisa Marie, Diana Venegas, David Miscavige
23.7. End of Term UK
23.8. Fritz Spohn visits
7.9. OSA INT appointment
8.9. begin term Greenfield School
22.10. mtg. Bloebaum
17.11. Raschidi, Kurt F.
26.11. Raschidi, Kurt F.

12.12. Mtg. Kurt Weiland in Munich - 10 p.m. in CC birthday party Addresses: Kirstie Alley, [xxxx] Louise Ave., Encino CA, 91316 phone: 818-986-[xxxx]; Amanda Ambrose, [xxx] Orange Ave.,Clearwater, FL,34616 home: 813-447-[xxx]; Kurt Fliegerbauer, Zugspitzstr.9, 8133 Feldafing; Greenfield School, Public Sec. Linda Scandrett - Principal Margret Hodkin, phone: 0044-34282-[xxx/xxx]; Arthur Hubbard, [xxx] Morrisonstreet Apt. [xxx], North Hollywood, CA 91601 phone: 818-508[xxx] or confid. 508[xxx];Jochen Knewitz 0711-[xxx];

Helnwein Appointment Calendar 1993

28.1. call Tom Voltz 0041-1-98[xxx]
31.1. Raschidi 10 p.m.
14.2. handle Disney, call Gallery in Vienna for Arthur,
Karen Holländer for DM appointment, call Gerhard Haag anrufen,
OSA Cyril
17.2. call OSA, Guardian + Visa news, Janet Weiland 9 a.m.
23.2. LA Day 213-660 [xxx] ext. 23, 213-383[xxx] call Dept.Senior CS,
Ann Snyder for mtg. Tues or Wed., 1.30 a.m. meet Lisa+Priscilla Presley
7 a.m. Jeff Pomeranz
24.2. 9 a.m. meet Janet Weiland, call Michael Stoller, 4 p.m. Ann Snyder CC 
INT, call Arthur 
28.2. 9 a.m. Michael Stoller evening, call Gerhard Haag 07153 4[xxxx]
1.3. Sandcastle Dinner Party 6.30 pm
2.3. Gerhard Haag in Stuttgart, Düsseldotf CC 4.-12.3.93, James Dean for 
Chat - Sandcastle reception
11.3. fax Robert
12..3. call Haag 
20.3. Renate CC LRH Birthday, Jane Hayton UK IAS - membership (IASA)
22.3. Stuttgart Gerhard Haag, Jane Hayton - IAS membership
26.3. Haag plus Waki arrive afternoon, Kurt+Veronika, Evi + Toni
29.3. Rainer Weber 0172-89[xxx] + Doro
1.4. Fax Michael Stoller, Haag 11 a.m.
3.4. Gabriele Buhre und Werner arrive
4.4. Roland Stahl arrives evening
5.4. Roland Stahl
9.4. Elsa + Jochen arrive
10.4. CC Study + E-Meter Repair, children UK, Check out Brigitte Bardenheuer 
17.4. CC Study
19.4. Kurt + GH Olsnitz
20.4. begin school term England
24.4. Kurt Fliegerbauer 6 p.m.
26.4. meet Tom Voltz 11 a.m. 00411 - 984 - [xx] GH in Vaduz
27.4. Gottschalk
2.5. invitation art meeting at Mißelbeck Ludwig Museum Cologne in priv. 
Room, 8-10 people from us, Fallheier (2), Kurt+V. (2), Peter (2), Mäckler 
(2)- appointment 9.5.
Arthur Hubbard Exhibition in Wiesbaden 11 May '93
6.5. meet Janitschek in Vienna, Expansions formula:
1. Create good policy
2. See to it that one can easily become familiar with it.
3. Energetically ensure that it is followed.
2.7. Renate in CC, call Susi Tschupp 813-461[xxx] ext. 85[xxx]
6.7. in CC Duesseldorf
7.7. in CC
8.7. Cyril ORG 089-3860[xxx]
9.7. in CC
14.7. CC
16.7. CC Duesseldorf
22.7. CC Study, Cyril 0041-1- 241[xxxx] ext.716,Dirk Weber arrives
24.7. im CC going away party
27.7. 2 p.m. Weiland 0761-500[xxx] heretic letter
28.7. Rosy Mundl, meet Bluemel 4th floor (Pizza Hut)Munich,
Dr. Bitar-Vollmer 02641-2[xxx], pay for 3 Lithos Rechnung:
Tom Steiner,c/o Weber, Wirthstr.21, Munich
2.10. CC Duesseldorf
3.10. call Lorraine Bulger 
8.10. call Mario Herold 0341-31[xxx]
9.10. in CC Duesseldorf, call Rainer Weber OSA / Kurt + Veronika
10.10 Study CC, Les Craine 415-435-[xxx]  883 3000-[xxx] Mueller Martin
22.10. Mercedes und Ali arrive UK
5.11. with Janitschek in Vienna 6 p.m. his 65th b-day.
8.11. call Mario Herold 
9.11. call Rainer Weber, Kurt +V.
22.11 GH to Brigitte Bardenheuer, call Freewinds 823 447[xxxx] Ingrid T. 
1.12.

Helnwein Appointment Calendar 1994

20.2. call Fliegerbauer 
27.2. children back in Greenfield School
4.3. Mario Herold with son Sohn + wife there
17.3. Reinking pictures / AP Herold
6.4. Fliegerbauer
30.4. CC dedication 8 p.m.
4.5. call CC Wien 
17.5. call Mario Herold 
27.5. call CC 
17.6. Lisa room 662
18.6. CC Duesseldorf
19.6. CC Duesseldorf
24.6. Fliegerbauer 0375 - 47[xxx]
9.7. Mercedes CC
16.8. Mercedes Folders
17.8. Mercedes to Tampa
18.9. get Adelheid letter
21.9. call Mario
28.9. Herold !
30.9. Meeting with Mario in Raststätte A 24 linum Bruch nach Potsdam
5.10. Cyril UK
25.11. call Lisa MJ
23.12. Mario AP for "Mig 23", FLAG Reception 813-461-[xxxx]

Helnwein the Painter to Sell Castle on Rhein

Koblenz, Germany
June 23, 1999
dpa

Koblenz (dpa) - The Austrian artist Gottfried Helnwein wants to sell his castle in Burgbrohl (Rheinland-Pfalz) on a Rhein tributary for 5.8 million marks.

The Baroque structure has about 2,000 square meters of living and utility space and is situation in a 1.2 hectare park with old trees, said Gisela Precht the real estate agent in Cologne on Wednesday. Helnwein is said to have finally moved to Ireland and New York and the year's beginning.

The 50 year old painter, concept artist and photographer repeatedly made headlines as an alleged advertising emblem for the Scientology sect. In 1997 the controversial organization communicated in Washington that Helnwein had given a "first hand report" to American government officials "about the shocking and painful discrimination which he, a Scientologist, had been subject to today in Germany despite his extraordinary professional achievements."

On December 29, 1998, however, the highest German court published a judgment which stated that Helnwein may no longer be described as a "Scientologist or minister for the Scientology sect."

According to Precht's statement, the father of four children had had the castle renovated at his own great expense. Presently he has leased it until the end of August every Friday to Monday to the Munich Ars Vita company, which has designer furniture, carpets, lamps and other objects of furniture on display in two stories.

"The marketing concept has nothing at all to do with the sale of the castle," commented the real estate agent. "But maybe someone will go there because of it who wants to buy the castle, too." The estate was originally mentioned for the first time in 1093, and was occupied in the 15th century by the archbishop of Trier. In 1689 French troops destroyed the castle, which was rebuilt in the 18th century as a Baroque castle.

Fathers of the Sacred Heart of Jesus lived their until the 1970s, then ownership changed hands several times. Helnwein moved into the castle in the 1980s. There were soon rumors in Burgbrohl that Scientology courses were being offered there. That, however, could never be proved, according to the Brohltal Association Community.

Helnwein became famous from his picture on the rock group "Scorpions" record cover, and others. With his cover pictures on magazines like "Time," "Der Spiegel," "Stern" and "Playboy" he became known to a wide audience. In the course of his career the artist puts portraits of abused children on exhibit, portrays himself as a martyr, and also paints stage scenery.

In Papenhausen the clocks run slower

Christian congregation builds their own chapel
Daily services at 6 a.m. and 6 p.m.

Bad Salzuflen-Papenhausen (Rei). Where else, if not here? This is what Willibald Dommes asked himself when he climbed the 250 meter high hill for the first time. Set apart on the edge of the forest, an old farm house became the nucleus of his living idea. In 1982, Dommes founded the "Papenhausen House Congregation," an open, Christian "WG" [work group] which has built its "House of Silence" in the past years.

"We tolerate all religions, anybody can take part in the service or seek contemplation." The congregation is ecumenical, mentions Katharina Adams. Everybody is welcome to the address "on the side of the mountain." Five people make up the actual core of the community - and they have done a lot over the years. All on their own they have erected a chapel in the same architectural style as the historic 1897 farm house which it adjoins. The community obtained the building stones from a burned-out barn in Bruentorf. The recently deceased Reverend Alfons Cordes dedicated the chapel on the mountain. A beautifully lit masterpiece, created just for contemplation. All are welcome to the "House of Silence," which bears the name of the salutary archangel from the Old Testament, St. Raphael, with a request to observe the silence. "You can get a refill of energy here," said Katharina Adams and glanced at the forest and field saturated idyll.

There are daily services in the chapel at six in the morning and six in the evening. "We have it mostly to ourselves in the morning," smiles Adams. Probably due to the time of day. Afternoons, however, there are plenty of other residents from Papenhausen, strollers or friends or acquaintances. The community not only hosts short visits, but overnight guests are also welcome. So are invalids who seek convalescence in the beneficial comfort of Papenhausen. At first questions were raised about a group set apart up on the mountain. Rumors made the rounds. "It was said that we were a sect or Scientologists," said Dommes. However, the diffuse statements have ceased. It may well have had something to do with the work of the somewhat different WG to form the residents of Papenhaus into a community. 58 people live in the tiny Salzuflen locale - and many of them attended Easter services in St. Raphael Chapel. And not only that: the House Community started an effort to get street signs put up for the village.

"Tolerance, Togetherness and Community": these are the buzzwords of the congregation whose logo combines dissimilar religions of the world. "This does not have anything to do with money," says Adams. In Papenhausen the clocks strike differently than in other places - and slower.

A Rift among Critics

[Agent provocateur: one employed to associate with suspected persons and by pretending sympathy with their aims to incite them to some incriminating action]

Scientology

Controversial organization incites unrest in the camp of its opposition

Ulm/Neu Ulm, Germany
Dienstag, 11.Mai 1999
Suedwest Presse

The psycho-concern sends out its spies

Deserter blows agent's cover
Operation Dustbin:
Wanted: incriminating material in the trash can

Critics of the controversial Scientology organization are incurably riven. This is over the outcome of an agent who operated undercover for years. Another who recently left the organization has now exposed the provocateur.

Helmut Pusch

Peter Reichelt

Psycho-concerns like Scientology fear nothing more than the exposure of its dubious machinations. Those who make these revelations must be silenced or discredited. A wedge must be driven into the alliance against the [Scientology] organization, states the practical writings of Scientology founder, L. Ron Hubbard. Critics, Hubbard continues, are all criminal. In order to make that known, Scientology maintains its own secret service. In Germany this is called the "Department of Special Affairs" (DSA). When nothing incriminating can be found, then it is manufactured, say critics.

If that is not enough, Hubbard recommends the employment of agent provocateurs. Fantasies of a science fiction author? Not even close. The Scientologists have slipped at least one man in amongst the critics, and he has done his job successfully. The man who says this is 44-year-old Norman S., who himself has worked for DSA. He learned this coincidentally from internal memos which state what actions Scientology has taken against critics in the past years.

As an agent, S. was a supernumerary. In Fall 1992 he was recruited and got the assignment to research attorney Ingo Heinemann, a renowned critic of the Scientologists. Among the tips contained in Hubbard's books is searching through the victim's trash cans - and that is what S. did for the 30th time. "We drove up right next to the can, opened the sliding door, got the trash can lightening quick, closed the sliding door and were off," he described the midnight operation. In a nearby woods, the trash was sorted. Not only carelessly thrown away documents such as letters or checks, but also medication packages and wine bottles - anything suited to put pressure on Heinemann was sent to a post office box in Hamburg. The rest was returned with the container back in front of Heinemann's house.

An Old Acquaintance

S., who has recently left Scientology, has now apologized for that to Heinemann. However, the man still has much more to tell, and that is what he has been doing - at the Constitutional Security agency which is observing Scientology, as well as at critics' like Heinemann. Very embarrassing for the latter group: they have been covering for a potentially successful Scientology spy for years now. S. learned the name of the undercover man who had the assignment to infiltrate the critics from Ralph Kleinicke, his DSA directing officer, and he knows this man well: Martin Beyer. S. brought him into Scientology himself. As early as 1989, Beyer had told him of his first assignment as an agent. In 1990, Beyer broke off contact: "We will not see or speak with each other for a long time," Beyer told him, reported Norman S.

Beyer had received a new assignment from the organization - the infiltration of the critics, superspy Kleinicke later told his apprentice, S. Beyer first appeared at Ingo Heinemann's Association for Intellectual and Psychical Freedom with the story that he wanted to leave Scientology. Accepted by Heinemann's association, Beyer started a tour throughout the various organizations which distribute information about Scientology and provide assistance for its victims.

In 1993, Beyer turned up at probably the best known Scientology critic, Renate Hartwig. Her book "Ich klage an," which had been on the best-seller lists for months by that time, had made "Scientology" a household word overnight. She had been declared by Scientology to be "Public Enemy Nr. !." After lengthy hesitation, Renate Hartwig accepted Beyer's offer to work for her. Apparently he exploited his stay in the critic's house.

Later copies of bank statements appeared from the "Robin Direkt" association, the chairman of whom is Renate Hartwig. Even internal documents about Hartwig's children [appeared]. All of a sudden Scientologists started showing up at her relatives' and friends'. Prior to that, Beyer had questioned the Hartwig's son about family members and their friends. Confidential details which Beyer knew about were suddenly also known by the Scientologists, and got back to Hartwig from people leaving Scientology. Conspicuously, years after Martin Beyer's stay in the Hartwig's house, all documents meant to shatter the credibility of the couple are dated 1993. And they have landed mainly in the laps of other critics.

A Deeper Rift

There is a simple reason for that. Among the critics today there is a deep rift. On the one side is the faction that gathers about Renate Hartwig, the successful best seller author. She is envied by the other, less successful critics because of her success. Besides that, in her book "Ich klage an," she accused critics who had been active for years of serious neglect. The reaction: Renate Hartwig was ostracized. Critical colleagues who greedily fell upon the allegedly incriminating documents included Ursula Caberta, the director of the Hamburg center for the observation of Scientology, and Renate Rennebach. The fact that these could only be stolen documents did not distract the ever-so-serious sect experts.

Back to 1993: Renate Hartwig had her suspicions and tried to talk about them to Martin Beyer. He, however, backed off, and used his membership in "Robin Direkt" as a ticket to another assistance organization, the "Article 4" association in Bochum.

There Beyer retained his pattern. He even appeared, as a representative of "Article 4," on one of the lists given out by SPD sect speaker Renate Rennebach to recommend competent spokesmen on the theme of Scientology and other psycho-groups. Until 1995. Then Renate Hartwig's third book, "Das Komplott und die Kumpane" ["The Conspiracy and the Companeros"] appeared. One Scientology companero had an entire chapter devoted to him: Martin Beyer. The members of "Article 4" read this attentively, and put Beyer, who had also sent out dubious letters on Article 4 letterhead paper and created discontent in mercenary dealings, on the spot. Beyer kept his mouth shut and was expelled - nevertheless he remained on the Rennebach list as an individual person. And there Beyer remains today (as of April 20, 1999), even after ex-agent Norman S., who is categorized by Constitutional Security has extremely credible, has exposed the undercover man.

His work is done

"I will continue to speak with him," sect critic Ingo Heineman disregarded the revelation, said ex-agent Norman S. "He has not hurt anybody yet," countered Frank Sassenscheidt-Grote, the personal spokesman for Renate Rennebach. Not hurt anybody? The rift among the critics gives evidence to the contrary. That is where Beyer has done his work. Beyer has also apparently proven his success as an information collector. The latest example: in the Federal Office for Constitutional Security, the entire thing was still a closed matter, when out of the Scientology circles the name of a promising applicant for a key position in the federal office in the area of Scientology was heard: Frank Sassenscheidt-Grote, who maintains the recommendation list for Renate Rennebach.

All this wide-eyed innocence in the matter is brushing Renate Hartwig the wrong way: she is now demanding the resignation of Renate Rennebach as political sect speaker of the SPD.

*** End of Article ****

---

[Meanwhile, back at the ranch ...
(Spying failures from a non-Scientology intelligence agency)]

Some people miss the spies
from the good old days

USA / The mistake in Belgrade again discredits the CIA

Critics of the intelligence service accuse them of exaggerating the use of technology.

George Tenet hopes that such an "error" will never be repeated. However, it won't be that simple for the CIA chief to sweep the matter under the rug. After the bombardment of the Chinese embassy in Belgrade, the U.S. intelligence agency itself is on the firing line. Its esteem will escape unscathed.

Peter de Thier, Washington

The official explanation sounds contrived and barely credible: the reason for the mistaken bombardment of the Chinese embassy in Belgrade is alleged to be an outdated city map. Four years ago Peking's highest representative in Yugoslavia had resided in a different complex, about 160 meter from the building that was demolished on Saturday night. Therefore, according to the somewhat stubborn logic of the attacking intelligence organization, NATO had hit the right target - in contrast to other shells that have strayed and cost Serb civilians their lives in the war, the laser-guided bombs were launched with precision.

A skeptical U.S. public and an enraged world will not buy the latest fiasco from the CIA. "There is a danger of losing that last little bit of credibility," was the comment of intelligence expert Thomas Seymour. Hardly has one recuperated from the numerous debacles of the 1990's, when "a disaster occurs that puts past mistakes in the shadows." His perspective is that after the end of the Cold War, the the CIA is on the lookout for a new justification of its existence. Instead of working out a clear concept, however, numerous personnel changes in the agency's management have resulted in a zigzag course. "The CIA really should have had nothing to do with the military planning of a NATO operation," said Seymour.

Hard hit

That was by no means the first time. Seven years ago Washington celebrated an alleged success, namely the successful bombardment of one of Saddam Hussein's war bunkers. The intelligence agency had also participated in the target planning at the time. It was not until later that it was learned that hundreds of civilians had been hit. Critics say that the CIA depends too much upon computer models and relies too much on technology for the business of spying, when they should be sending agents into the "lion's cave" to collect intelligence like in the good old days. Intercessors say that Bagdad and Belgrade are the exceptions; as a rule military target acquisition is a matter for the Pentagon and the military command in whose jurisdiction the matter lies.

In any case, their image is severely tarnished. In the past few weeks the American public has gotten increasingly involved with the military action and with the victims of the war in the Balkans. The fact that their own intelligence agency is responsible for the political consequences in Belgrade has caused criticism and mockery from among them. Also, the memories of the recent scandals have not yet faded away. Aldrich Ames, who was supposed to be recruiting real Russian spies for U.S. counter-intelligence, sold highly sensitive information to the KGB for two million dollars over a period of four years. The fact that he, as a middle manager, was showing up at work in a Jaguar and was able to carry out the documents in a brown paper bag, and that nobody noticed this for seven years, degraded the once legendary CIA into a laughingstock.

After that came the scandal with the spy, Harald Nicholson, and the murder of an American civilian in Guatemala by a CIA spy and the resulting efforts to sweep the affair under the rug. The height of embarrassment was the arrest and subsequent release of the former KGB man, Vladimir Golkin. He had applied for a visa at the U.S. embassy in Moscow and had truly wanted to give information about his former job. He was allowed to immigrate into the USA, but was promptly arrested by the FBI, who had been looking for Golkin for some time. Doing this, however, was a violation of the unwritten rules of international espionage. After Moscow interceded and put heavy pressure on Vice President Al Gore, Golkin was once again released.

Completely inside-out

This case documented not only the dispute in responsibility between the CIA and the FBI, but also revealed the intelligence service once more as a half-baked organization which was in the news because of its involvement in cocaine smuggling. It was claimed, and never quite refuted, that the CIA used profits from the narcotics business to fund the Nicaraguan Contras.

For U.S. President Bill Clinton, the misguided bombs in Belgrade came at a particularly unfavorable time. He had wanted to beef up the budget for the CIA next year by nine percent, to $29 billion. That will pass in Congress only if the intelligence agency is turned inside out from the ground up.

Industry: Pamperizing the World

A very passing mention of Scientology

Schwalbach, Germany
April 10, 1999
From: "Sueddeutsche Zeitung, Seite Drei"

A pile of fasteners

Why diapers are one of the secret things of our time - and not only babies are wrapped in them

by Birk Meinhardt

Schwalbach/Heidenheim, in April - "You know, don't you, what the three most volatile goods of the day are?" asks Krzysztof Malowaniec, and he looks like somebody who is getting ready to tell a joke - a little cunning, brimming with anticipation and excitement. One has to say no, so that he can continue.

"No."

"I will reveal it to you. Cut flowers, computers and diapers."

Malowaniec laughs triumphantly. Diapers, disposable diapers, nobody would have guessed it. And the funniest thing about it is that it's not a joke at all, but true. At least it comes rather close to the truth. Every six months one company or another tosses a new model into the market in five or six different sizes - with Velcro fasteners, with a surface layer that breathes, with skin protection. It used to be this happened every three or four years. In the future it will happen four times a year, when possible. The rhythm of innovation is getting constantly shorter, as is said in commercial terms. That is insane because they are just diapers, things to poop in, something quite simple, at least in its origins.

It goes back to antiquity. Back then babies were wrapped from head to toe, and were liberated from their wrappings only once a day. For a long time the rich people used silk and the peasant women stuck with crude linen and hung their children on poles at the edge of the field like sacks, only the sacks cried and kicked about. That is the history behind how such a small thing which serves to limit discomfort came to be constructed in such a complicated way and is as much advertised as a computer or a car. What about this is progress, and what is just hot air? How difficult it is to tell the difference! How perfectly people must have to work who don't want you to be able to tell the difference. A story from the modern world of goods, but it will not be an unproductive opportunity. There are babies out there, little kicking babies who pump out one and a half liters of urine and 300 grams of stool per day.

The diaper is a product like an automobile, right? Krzysztof Malowaniec nods. "You make your selection of a car on the basis of how it is equipped. Do I take a leather-covered steering wheel or not? Heated external mirrors? Wiper blades for the headlights? That is how things have gotten to be with diapers, too."

It is like the military.

He is the chief researcher at Fixies. His brand has 19 percent of the market share, which makes it number two in Germany at a considerable distance behind Pampers, which has 59 percent. Fixies belongs to Hartmann in Heidenheim, Pampers to Proctor and Gamble. And Proctor & Gamble is everywhere. It has over 200 brands, including Ariel, Meister Proper, Blend-a-med, Valensina, and more. You would hardly know it, since the individual articles buzz about independently of each other through space while the giant corporation never puts in an appearance; perhaps to not arouse the resentment of every Moloch. But it's there in the background, and works away coolly and effectively. In order to introduce Pampers in Japan, it told mothers to tie their cloth diapers outside their windows. Half of Japan's windows wore white with brown spots. An army of drivers wound their way through urban gullies and replaced the cotton cloth with their new discovery. Thus began the Pamperization of the world.

It is now complete. One notices that the Pampers brand name has become a generic term: it is also used for the competing products, such as Tempo is used for handkerchiefs. Or, in sports terms, their lead is a great at that of the Bavarian soccer team in the national league, 15 points easy.

In order to maintain their lead, 100 people in central Germany alone work for P & G in Schwalbach in Taunus on the continuing development of Pampers. Anybody who wants to observe them at work has to sign a confidentiality agreement in case he sees something which he was not supposed to. Besides that, he is escorted by Mrs. Karesch, the public relations woman who stays by his side to see to it that he stays in the proper areas of the building and speaks only with the proper people, whom she will correct if they happen to let a wrong word slip. Mrs. Karesch is very friendly, but all in all, an atmosphere reigns as one of a military installation in which secret weapons are being constructed.

Drawings? Bring them with you?

Mrs. Karesch leads us to a large display case. Behind its glass door hang 30 weights, bulky iron pistons which one recognizes from the general stores of one's distant childhood. Only these here are not rusty or dented. Now and then a weight falls down. Then a soft, dull thud comes through the glass. Over the door is the display of a digital clock. 211.6 minutes. That is how long Velcro fastener Nr. 14 was able to withstand the pull of the iron weight.

The one attending the display case is Dr. Jochen Schaefer, a physicist. In tests which last for months, he has refined the material of the fasteners. It is now softer and holds better. Schaefer points out the differences in two profile diagrams. One depicts waves, the other shows pictures of something resembling tree stumps. "Those hook in from all sides," he explains, "a significant improvement for all consumers." He went on to say that P & G was the first to bring Velcro fasteners into general use on the diaper market, and that the fastener was "invented in 1948, was used only in space travel for a long time, and used to be exorbitantly expensive."

Can we take the diagrams with us for a presentation?

Schaefer, who is 32 years old, has an "A" average toward his degree, and studied with the highly gifted, looked inquiringly, as an intern, at Mrs. Karesch. She said she would ask about it. She later expressed her regrets.

If the material had not already been on the market, or if the material had not already been dissected by the competition, the regret would have been understandable, but it wasn't; it was irritating. Fearful, almost paranoid.

Perhaps there is just too much money at stake. At some point, money no longer encourages movement, but stifles it. The Dagobert Duck effect. Anyway you would not believe what kind of sales are targeted for disposable diapers. The calculations go like this: in the first eleven months of the past year, 719,796 children were born in Germany. For simplicity's sake, let's call it 700,000. Multiply that by four for the four times a day diapers are usually changed. Multiply that by 1,000 for the 1,000 days the baby needs to get dry. Multiply that by 0.40, which is the average cost, in German marks, of a diaper. That makes 1.12 billion marks in sales. Pampers shoots for over half of that.

Krzysztof Malowaniec's shop is, of course, smaller. He has just a half dozen staff in an open laboratory. The smaller groups are always less restrictive, so Malowaniec tells us things which P & G would rather keep to themselves, such as a diaper with the fine name of Lotus.

"They have not been around for a while. They were developed in the early 1980's by a French company. They had everything the newest models have, including Velcro fasteners."

"So why aren't they around any more?"

"Because they were ahead of their time. And because the company did not have the power of communication. Inventions which fall upon unprepared customers die."

The converse also holds true. A company with a high power of communication can jazz up the teensiest modification as a revolutionary discovery. The product would then, of course, not die, but thrive.

Procter is the most powerful communicator, the greatest advertiser in the world. In 1993, author Alecia Swasy wrote about the corporation, whose advertising budget runs $2.15 billion annually in the US: more than McDonald's, Kellogg's and Coca-Cola put together. In Germany, the budget for Pampers is estimated to be only 80 million marks.

P & G had created a whole new advertising culture, but that was a long time ago, in 1933. Ma Perkins was born at that time. She was said to be 37 years old, a wonderfully long time for her. Ma was the lead character of a heartbreak series on NBC radio which was broadcast five times a week. Oxydol was mentioned by name 25-25 times each show. That was a soap by Procter. That was the origin of soap operas. It was not well accepted at first; in the first week of broadcast there were 500 complaints from enraged listeners. The people did not want to be plied with commercials, but they eventually gave in. Maybe they did not even notice it - a kind of socialization. After one year, Oxydol sales doubled.

Now Christian Struck produces television ads for the Saatschi & Saatchi agency. He works "on Pampers," as he says. It sounds like "on Schalke," after hard physical work, after sweat and cramps. But Struck is a young man with soft features and sort of a bored demeanor. He pushes the first video in.

A mother, who looks like all ad mothers, cool and well-rested, and whose features are highlighted by a gentle white light, her baby beside her, talks in general about a diaper from a well liked company. As concerns the skin of her child, it "is sweaty, slightly moist" she says as as she wrinkles her nose in disgust. Then her features brighten, because of the new Pampers. They "are really classy and ingenious."

Ad experts, who do not work on and with and near Pampers, describe this as "love and care world". It always works according to the same model: shake up, tear down, build up. I will help your baby feel well in this evil world. Only I will help you. You should believe me and follow me. Otherwise it could be that you are not such a good mother, after all.

"Real life," says Christian Struck.

"How is that, please?"

For a moment he looks as cross as the Mom in the film. How could you not understand? "Real life," he repeats, "it is the experiences of the mother. It is her own speech."

"That's how mothers speak?"

"Yes, words were not put in her mouth. We are very proud of having developed this format."

The one with five stripes

"There," calls the satisfied baby at the end of the universal ad. "There," repeats Struck, as he takes out the videocassette. One can say that he had an emotional bond to his product, as it turned out lucky that a baby naturally contributed to the game in the advertisement and sale of diapers. It's more comforting than a car. Or would an adult go "vroom, vroom" when a streamlined machine raced out of the picture?

The commercial was meant for Lotion Care, a diaper introduced last May - the diaper with five stripes. According to the prospectus, it contained "mild, perfume-free lotion with a vaseline base" and was meant to protect babies' skin. Samples were sent to 80-90 percent of all consumers at the time. The Procter machine hummed and whirred and produced something new.

There were only three things. A small US company, Drypers, had already introduced a skin care diaper three years before. And a skin care diaper does not transport the cream to the creases, there, where the skin is most sensitive. The parents have to do that with their fingers, as they always have. And Ecotest wrote, "We do not support this seeming comfort. For one thing the diaper is unnecessarily bleached. That harms the environment. For another, the lotion contains artificial fats. They form a film on the baby's skin and hinder skin regulation. To keep the whole thing from turning sour, an allergy-causing chemical called BHT is mixed in with it."

It is the old game of hide-and-seek. They gush on about Lotion Care, or about some other brand. They like to tell you half-truths. They tell you twenty or thirty times in two days that they are only there for the consumers, but the word "money" or a similar word is never mentioned. Malowaniec just cried out, "Of course we want to make some money, too!" He is somewhat more open than the others. "Perhaps," he grumbles, "I am just a little too honest."

The entire truth is that gigantic improvements have been made. You only have to look at the lumpy models from 40 years ago to see that. The disposable diaper is not much older than that. The first were produced in 1950 by Paulistrom, the Swedish company. That name does not appear in the Procter prospectus, instead the name of Vic Mills is celebrated as a researcher with P & G and as a grandfather. "I used to change diapers with my own hands," he said, cotton diapers, "and it wasn't any fun." That was in 1956. He went into the laboratory and began to look about. Four years later, his pieces went to market with a programmatic name: to "pamper" means to "spoil."

Today's models are more advantageously cut, softer, more absorbent, they close better and almost never leak, however, the last quantum leap took place in the 1980's. Back then the diapers were stuffed with a super- absorber, white granules which looked like salt, which could absorb 100 times their own weight in fluid. In doing so, they turned into a gelatinous mass, and the urine was conducted in this way to the exterior surface of the diaper, drying in seconds.

"Rehashing ideas"

New models on the market include Ultra Dry and Extra Plus - the names already reveal helplessness, because they are really not that much more of an improvement, unless you count the super-superlative names. Krzysztof Malowaniec calls that the "rehashing ideas" phase. The thrill of the product has almost worn off. Like the 100 meter world's record which is being constantly beaten, but by an ever-narrowing margin which can only be detected by the finest sensors.

At Pampers they say they are always at least seven ideas ahead, seven targets. "Enough to be able to survive for ten years," believes Ludwig Busam, a research director. That was the one sentence which slipped out from anyone at P & G which was meaningful. They research to survive. When Pampers comes up with something new, the others have to follow. The faster Pampers sprints ahead, the more breathless the others get. They hang back. They do not have the capacity. "Repression through innovation," Krzysztof Malowaniec calls it.

This is how the market share at Moltex shrunk between 1992 and 1998 from 7.5 to 4.3 percent, at Peaudouce from 6.1 to 0.7, and at Born from 1.7 to 0.0 - the brand died.

Jochen Schaefer continues to develop his fastener systems. "We deliver to humanity," he said, "They want it. The need arises and we follow."

"Has it been, perhaps, turned around, and you are creating the need yourself?"

"Oh, if I give the Third World more to eat, I would also be inflating the need."

Schaefer flushed a little. Perhaps he found the comparison unfortunate, in retrospect. He forms a pyramid with his hands to represent need. "Below, that is eating, having a place to live and sleep. In the middle are the relationships which are not as tangible, and up top is the environment." The milieu, the mood. Like almost all the others at Procter in Schwalbach, he likes to punctuate his speech with English words. "And it is similar to disposable diapers. First they were only supposed to be a substitute for cotton diapers. Then they had to constantly improve. And now come the special features."

Schaefer is not just a technician. In his studies, he also took theater and literature. He likes authors' films, the last one he went to was Kusturica's "Black cat, white cat." And he doesn't have a television set. "That medium does not say much to me. When I look at it, I have an empty feeling afterwards. It is always the same old mush."

"Then you don't see any Pampers commercials." - "Yes, I see them when I'm someplace else. They are a part of it, whether I want it or not. Without them we wouldn't be so big."

Mrs. Karesch was called out of the room. Dr. Schaefer said, quietly, that he had his own personal opinion, but it must not leave the room. Then Mrs. Karesch walked back into the room again. Then Schaefer went on to explain that he liked to work with P & G on account of the responsibility which he was given. "I am a integral part of the organism."

Author Swasy had put it a little differently. "Proctoids" are what she calls the corporation's staff. There is really no such word, but it reminds you of something chemical. Proctoids are severely restricted in their private lives. They have a certain arrangement which is not influenced by themselves. Particles in a big, strong alliance. That is why it is rumored that P & G is allegedly a department of Scientology.

That rumor is not true, as far as anybody knows, but an employee who was able to speak outside of Schwalbach said that he understood how such a rumor could come about, "because Procter is like a religion. Everyone here is put on edge."

At the end of the story, there is a little brown pile left over. Poop. The urine has already oozed away, but the many diaper researchers have not yet been able to make the stools disappear. They're puzzling over it. One of the ideas is to have a little bumper seat, a hole that will somehow close when the baby is done.

And that is the straight poop. You will never really get rid of it. One must, unfortunately, say that it is an integral part of the organism.

Does Scientology have the Roest Estate?

From: "Kieler Nachrichten"
March 9, 1999

Kappeln - New rumors about the Roest Estate near Kappeln are making their way about: the architectural gem from 1519, which, after the bankruptcy of the former owner, was put on the auction block by the Bremer Nordfinanz Bank for 3.51 million marks, is said to have been sold to a US business which has connections to the Scientology sect. Price: 4 million marks.

According to the report it is a "Mining Corporation" from Nevada. The German business manager is already said to be living in the main quarters and to have given notice to the renters on the property. However, the conditions of the sales contract, which was closed with Nordfinanz in December of last year, have not yet been met. The bank is still the owner.

The bank's chairman of the board of directors, Hans-Joerg Kern, verified yesterday that a contract had been closed in December with an American company. The price was also "in that general area." Rumors about participation by the Scientologists "have also reached us," said Kern. There is no evidence for that other than assertions. Nothing has been checked out. Kern said, "We assume that the conditions of the contract will be met within 14 days."

He mentioned that the property, which is a protected landmark, had been taken over, out of necessity, by the Kieler Bank Compagnie Nord BCN) in 1997 after the second court date had passed. The previous owner, Hamburg real estate magnate Hans Erich Dabelstein, was five million marks in debt at the end of 1995.

It was already said at the first auction date in Schleswig that Scientology was interested in the Roest estate. "Now there appears to be new evidence," verified Kappeln's mayor, Udo Rust. He had asked that it be checked out by the state sect commissioner, "but we have not found anything definite so far." The American business is not known there. A staff member of the office confirmed that yesterday. However, further research will be undertaken.

The Scientology organization, whose German headquarters is in Hamburg, and who, according to the Kiel Interior Ministry is only "blowing things out of proportion" with the rumors of expansion, does not, at least, deny its participation at Roest. Spokesperson Gisela Hackenjos stated, "If that were the case, we would keep quiet about it until everything was signed and sealed." She said it was correct that they were becoming more active in the north. "Schleswig-Holstein does not have to worry about that - we are nice people."

Cornelia Mueller

Correspondence from Schmelz goes below the belt

From: "Frankfurter Neue Presse"
Thursday, February 25, 1999

Bad Vilbel. Grudgingly, but still keeping it above the belt, former city councilman Karl-Joachim Schmelz publicly announced and justified his departure from all posts inside the local SPD association and his resignation from city council positions. Schmelz spared his comrades the dirty stuff, more likely he probably wanted to spare them. However, a multiple paged letter of resignation, addressed to to the honorable colleagues on February 11, has somehow made its way to the official information publication of the city of Bad Vilbel, and can be read there in all its painfulness and, often more than not, drastic selection of words in the Tuesday edition. Schmelz lambasted former city councilman Helmut Lehr, former SPF party chairman Hans Frank and co-councilman Hans-Joachim Hisgen. Schmelz also saw to it that suspicions of Scientology connections were cast upon the newly appointed local SPD Association Chairman, Klaus Arabin.

There was certainly nothing to these kind of accusations, said local association chief Wilfried Krumpeter to the FNP. The SPD board will be advised as to the matters in the Schmelz letter this Thursday. Krumpeter said that he does not yet have a statement from Schmelz that he is leaving the party. It is possible that this separation will be brought about by the SPD itself.

City councilman Minkel welcomed Schmelz' resignation. He thought that Schmelz was an "undignified representative of the magistrate." Minkel termed the alleged connection of Klaus Arabin to Scientology by Schmelz as "extraordinarily evil." Minkel "hopes" that Schmelz' resignation will be cause for a "self-purge by the Vilbel SPD." (new)

Affair of the fired editor continues

From: "Stuttgarter Nachrichten," Germany
February 10, 1999

"Schwaebische Zeitung" makes itself heard for the first time - attorney looks at complaint against the publisher's

Leutkirch - The "Schwaebische Zeitung" newspaper in Leutkirch had kept quiet about the recent events surrounding the dismissal of its religious editor. On Tuesday, the publishing company took the offensive.

by Karl Friedrich Rommel

Chief editor Joachim Umbach made a statement in his newspaper in which he admitted to his readers that he had "atmospheric disturbances" in his newspaper's operating climate. The causes for this were said to be the restructuring of the newspaper in the past few years. The dismissal of his long-term religious editor, Joachim Rogosch, which has aroused both interest and petition- signing campaigns throughout the state, was explicitly addressed. The sole grounds [for the dismissal] was said to have been Rogosch's alleged spreading of a rumor that the "Schwaebische Zeitung" was under the influence of Scientology. "To say it clearly: this imputation is absurd. Nobody on the management stage of the "Schwaebische" publishing company or the firms they deal with has anything to do with the sect or its concepts," stated Umbach.

The religious editor, who had been dismissed without notice in December, was said to have told Bishop Walter Kasper during a meeting that the newspaper was under the influence of Scientology. "That point was gotten across by Bishop Kasper a few days later to our publisher, Prince Waldburg-Zeil, and also to other people," wrote Umbach in his statement. In this way, the Bishop is, once again, being indirectly accused of spreading rumors.

The Bishop has not officially taken a position on the confidential meeting with the religious editor so far. Nevertheless, Kasper stated in writing to Rogosch's attorney that Rogosch had never addressed Scientology dealings at the "Schwaebische Zeitung." "That is fully contrived and incorrect," stated attorney Keiko Gleixner on Tuesday in response to the newspaper's accusation. "We can present the letter from the Bishop at any time," said Gleixner. The question to be resolved at the moment is whether Rogosch will bring suit against the "Schwaebischen" publishing company and its chief editor.

From: "Holsteinischer Courier"
February 4, 1999

A new dispute has broken out over the controversial Scientology sect. A sect spokesperson has announced increased activity in Schleswig-Holstein, and the Hamburg governmental authorities believe they have found a strong financial backer of Scientology in Neumuenster.

Ursula Caberta, the director of the government Work Group on Scientology ["Arbeitsgemeinschaft Scientology"], described the financier as a "man from the real estate sector," who had formerly been employed in printing establishments. He has not yet publicly announced his connection to Scientology, but has been with it for years.

According to a newspaper report, a Scientology spokesperson had announced that activity would be increased in Schleswig-Holstein, because this is said to be the only German state in which the sect is not under surveillance by Constitutional Security. "It looks to me like things are being blown out of proportion in an apparent effort to divert attention from the fact that Scientology finds itself in a desolate condition," said Interior Minister Ekkehard Wienholtz (SPD), alluding to the sect's decreasing membership. He has not had any indications of increased activity, said the Minister in Kiel.

Gerd Kuehl of the Mittelholstein Businessman's Association is not aware of any Scientologist in Neumuenster's commerce. "We have no knowledge and no suspicion of anything like that," Kuehl told the Courier. (tg)

http://www.courier.de:80/cgi-bin/disp-1.pl?name=courier&mod=disp&art=/99/02/04/03/30/03-30-27-2168

Annoyed readers put the "Schwaebischen" under pressure

From: "Stuttgarter Nachrichten", LANDESNACHRICHTEN, Germany
January 28, 1999

200 demonstrators protest in front of Leutkirch newspaper building against dismissal of religious editor

Leutkirch - "We are the readers, we are the readers," demonstrators chanted in front of the publishing plant of the "Schwaebischen Zeitung" newspaper in Leutkirch. "We were the readers," countered other demonstrators - unrest ferments in Catholic Oberschwaben.

by KARL FRIEDRICH ROMMEL
and ANDREAS SCHARF

In protest against the dismissal of the paper's religious editor, Joachim Rogosch, about 200 people from Allgaeu marched in front of the publishing plant with torches and carbide lamps. "Rogosch in - Kolb out" read one banner. That refers to the publishing director. Udo Kolb, for the demonstrators who were standing and freezing in the icy slush, amounts to the person chiefly responsible for all the misery. With a ruthless management style, he has caused insecurity and fear in the publishing company, say the demonstrators.

The dismissal of the religious editor, who had poured out his heart to Bishop Walter Kasper about the conditions at the publishing company, has thereby come to a head. Kasper had confided in publisher Georg, Prince of Waldburg-Zeil, and mentioned the name of his informant. The prince reacted immediately by informing the publishing director - and he gave Rogosch notice of immediate dismissal on Christmas Eve. The editor, it was stated, had committed a grave breach of trust in that he was said to have associated the Schwaebischen Verlag with the Scientology sect. This imputation did not contain any element of truth, the publishing company appealed to its readers in a statement on Wednesday.

The demonstrators did not want to accept that explanation. The publishing company should not be allowed to "entitle the publishing director of a Christian oriented newspaper to turn things upside-down," was the opinion expressed by Bernhard Mueller through his megaphone. The Catholic activist had helped to organize the torch parade. "Intimidation and pressure are not Christian methods," said Mueller. He even reported of "subtle threats" during a meeting of the arrangers with the publishing management that same day. The management had been asked if it was aware of the responsibility for Rogosch's family - it was mentioned that the company could always let the settlement made in labor court fall through. In the revocable settlement, the publishers and the editor had agreed on continued payment of salary until the middle of the year and on an 80,000 mark payment.

The demonstrators were angry. "To me it is simply incomprehensible how a publishing director can drive his company into a concrete wall," said a businessman from Leutkirch. Others were more concerned about the contents of the paper, "You can't detect too much of a Christian orientation at that newspaper," said a 20 year old student from Kisslegg. However, the abrupt dismissal of the religious editor continued to be the theme for most, "Those aren't Christians, bah, humbug," scolded a 60 year old nurse in referring to the publishing director.

He was making himself noticeable on Wednesday evening through his absence. Chief editor Joachim Umback looked in for him. He had a discussion with twenty readers after the demonstration. They were being manipulated by the competition, Umback accused them, then finally, "we were just talking past each other," a demonstrator rated the meeting.

http://www.stuttgarter-nachrichten.de/dc1/html/news-stn/19990128lana0012.htm

Editor receives settlement

From: "Suedwestdeutsche Zeitung, Germany "
January 19, 1999

"Schwaebische Zeitung" loses its hard line in court

RAVENSBURG. The "Schwaebische Zeitung" has come to an agreement with its religious editor in labor court. The journalist, who was originally terminated without notice, leaves the newspaper with a settlement.

by Franz J. Schmid

More than a dozen editors of the paper, along with many other interested bystanders, had gone to the labor court hearing to show solidarity for Joachim Rogosch. It rapidly became clear that the publishing management of the "Schwaebischen Zeitung" would like to avoid further sensation and would try to reach a compromise.

The case was being following by several newspapers and radio broadcast companies. If the judicial process would have continued, it is likely that Rottenburg Bishop Walter Kasper would have had to be called as a witness. The attorney made no secret that the idea that this might happen was unappetizing for the management of the "Independent Newspaper for Christian Culture and Politics."

As reported in our Saturday edition, Rogosch had openly told the Bishop, after a visit by the editorial staff, that the good work climate at the "Schwaebische Zeitung" was being denied the staff by mounting pressure. Bishop Kasper had voiced the concern to one of the most prestigious publishers, the Prince of Waldburg-Zeil, along with the name of his informant. The consequence was termination without notice for Rogosch, who then had to immediately clean out his desk and receive his termination papers on Christmas Eve, of all times.

The publishing management accused him of having, in the course of his discussion with the Bishop, made a connection between the enterprise and Scientology, which Rogosch once again disputed yesterday. He had never made that kind of statement, he said, and the Bishop could vouch for him. The publisher's attorney made it clear that reinstatement was not possible, and after some hesitation, offered a settlement of 100,000 marks. That was met with laughter from a portion of the public. Both parties then withdrew for discussion.

The result was that the termination without notice was withdrawn, and that the working relationship would end June 30, 1999, but the editor would be on furlough until then. In addition, he received a settlement for 80,000 marks.

The case must also have aroused some sensation in church circles. As was related yesterday in Ravensburg, the article from Saturday's Stuttgarter Zeitung [newspaper] on Saturday was nailed to a church door at Neutrauchburg near Isny.

Car Bomb puzzle missing pieces

Four weeks after assassination attempt on Gondrom: "The trail is cold"

From: "Frankenpost"
June 19, 1998

by Harald Jackel

Bindlach/Munich. - Four weeks after the car of the Bayreuther publisher, Volker Gondrom, was bombed at his Bindlach workplace, there is still no trace of the perpetrators. The experts of the German criminal investigative office ("Landeskriminalamt, LKA") in Munich performed a complicated chemical and pryrotechnical analysis to determine the construction of the bomb and the nature of the firing mechanism. The investigators have not yet succeeded in their attempts.

On Thursday, an LKA representative responded to an inquiry by our newspaper that the agency found itself confronted by an "extraordinarily difficult trail", and that the investigation could still continue for a long time. The explosive, which completely destroyed the floor plate and the insides of the parked Jaguar, detonated so completely that very little trace of it was left. Based on this fact, the investigators could not preclude the possibility that the bomb had been constructed by a professional.

Despite several tips provided by the public at large, the state district attorney's office and its investigators still have not had a solid lead. The authorities did not want to take any position on the speculation of a possible connection between the assassination attempt and Gondrom's activities against the Scientologists.

After having been anonymously implicated of being connected to Scientology, the Bayreuth publisher and his chain of bookstores had launched a counter-offensive. Strong denials ended with an anti-Scientology meeting between Gondrom and Renate Hartwig, renowned sect critic. Hartwig bolstered Gondrom's position and publicly stated, "there is nothing to these rumors. Gondrom is doing everything humanly possible against Scientology." Two weeks later, at 10:15 a.m. on May 18, a bomb exploded under Gondrom's car which was parked outside his Bindlach place of work.

Since then, the publisher, his family and his business have been under the protection of a professional security firm, "Security First." The firm is led by a former member of the Bavarian police's special unit.

A 3,000 mark reward is offered for information leading to the capture of the person(s) responsible. [telephone numbers given]

Green Party detects a scandal in hall rental

From: "Frankfurter Neue Presse"
May 29, 1998

by Kristiane Huber

Liederbach. They are suspected of having connections with the Scientology Church. It has been said that they, themselves, have characteristics of a sect. For at least ten years, they have been having meetings in the Liederbach hall. They are the internationally active "Landmark Education GmbH." Among other things, this business provides courses in life aid and personality development. These courses bring intimate problems of the participants to the attention of over a hundred people. It is suggested that this and a seminar is a cure-all for personal difficulties. This is how experts who have observed Landmark have described it.

For the "Green List Liederbach (GLL)" and the Greens in Main-Taunus-Kreis, it is a scandal that this business pays rent into the community chest. If a group of this sort could use the space in the Liederbach hall per committee, that would be something different, but this is an "incontestable" rental arrangement. The parties represented in the community parliament knew about it, but covered it up with a "cloak of silence." Albrecht Kundiger, a Green Party leader, presumes this consensus was reached in view of the size of the rental income. Liederbach is taking in 25,000 - 30,000 D-marks ($18,000 - 22,000) from the Landmark GmbH. Kundiger thinks it incomprehensible that the CDU campaigns against sect-like organizations, yet accepts psychological damage to the people here.

Representatives of other parties showed little surprise when inquiries were made. The arrangement with Landmark was said to be a "suspect affair," but one could not refuse public space on the basis of presumptions, and Landmark cannot be "legally comprehended," said Ursula Eilmes, the SPD faction chairperson. Nevertheless, Landmark has bandied itself about to such an extent that the group should limit its activities in the locale, interjected Eilmes. To the question as to whether the considerable size of the rental income was a basis for "looking the other way," Eilmes responded in the negative.

Ludwig Kleber, FWG faction chairman, sees no need for action. It appears to him that no harm has come of it. As long as it has been determined that they have not "done something bad," then there would be no reason not to rent the Liederbach Hall to them. Kleber said, "For ten years they have behaved themselves orderly, intelligently and in an exemplary fashion. Klaus Wasgien, the CDU faction chief, sees things differently. The group's appearance is "aggressive and provocative." However, the group has no evidence against the renters. Reports of Landmark acquiring property in Liederbach - rumors have mentioned the Karl Winnacker building - are a hoax, according to Wasgien. Mayor Gerhard Lehner, who could not be reached yesterday, sees it like this: as long as Landmark is not provably categorized as a sect or a banned organization, they could not be refused the space. Other members of the local parliament expressed themselves in equivalent terms.

"No solid evidence" - Investigators in Bindlacher

From:
http://www.frankenpost.de/artikel/aktuell/17d01442.htm

Bomb attack remains a mystery

Gondrom, "I feel threatened."

From: "Frankenpost"
May 20, 1998

by Harald Jackel

After the bombing of his Jaguar (as we reported), Volker Gondrom, publisher and owner of the book stores named after him, still feels threatened. In light of the vicious attack, the businessman stated on Tuesday, "Whoever did that is capable of other things." Meanwhile, the police have no definite clues, and are seeking assistance from the general public.

Bindlach. - While the experts of the State Investigative Office [Landeskriminalamt] (LKA) have been able to determine neither the construction of the bomb, the type of explosive, nor the type of detonator as of one day after the explosion, the investigators have at least been able to determine that the force of the explosion would have been enough to kill any occupants of the car.

The Bayreuth Chief District Attorney, Friedrich Eichfelder, replied in the affirmative to our newspaper's inquiry as to whether the explosive had been located underneath the car. It is still not clear if it was placed under the heavy limousine or if it had been attached to the floor plate. The bomb blew through the floor plate on Tuesday at 10:30 a.m., destroying the interior of the vehicle. Since it could not have been reckoned that Gondrom was going to be in the vehicle at the time of the explosion, the State Attorney's Office is initially investigating the incident not as attempted assassination, but as the use of explosives for destruction of property.

Eichfelder did not want to participate in any speculation as to whether this could have been an act of revenge, or a "warning shot" from Scientology. The district attorney said, "We are investigating all possibilities and do not wish to make premature decisions."

Rumors about the connection with the psycho-business have made their rounds because of the anonymous implication of the Gondrom chain with Scientology. Volker Gondrom, the publisher, responded by launching a counter-offensive and has been cleared [of any connection] by the renowned Scientology expert and critic Renate Hartwig.

Gondrom stated, "I don't know anything more. I don't have any enemies." He has never been threatened either privately or professionally. Therefore he is upset and feels threatened after the attack. In response to the question as to whether Scientology could be behind the attack, Gondrom answered, "There is no suspicion of that." Gondrom also vouches for his employees. They have nothing to do with either Scientology nor with the attack.

All the same, the publisher, who always drives his own car, is sure that this was no accident. It "was apparently directed only at me."

The LKA states that there is a 3,000 mark reward for information about the crime. [Telephone numbers are given.] The investigators are especially interested in any suspicious activity occurring in the area of the crime between 8 and 10:15 that morning. The bomb must have been placed under the car at that time.

Gondrom: Bomb explodes under Jaguar

From:
http://www.frankenpost.de/artikel/aktuell/17d02546.htm

Appeared May 19, 1998

Savage bomb attack on publisher's limousine in Bindlach

by Harald Jackel

Is someone after Volker Gondrom, the Bayreuth publisher and book dealer? After a bomb attack on the entrepreneur's jaguar on Monday, experts from the Landeskriminalamt (LKA) [German FBI] have been desperately trying to answer this question. A bomb exploded at 10:30 a.m. under the luxury sedan in its parking spot at the Gondrom compay in Bindlach. The car was destroyed. Nobody was injured. At the time of the deed the publisher was already in his office.

Bindlach. - The explosive had a brutal destructive force. It burst through the thick floor plate and destroyed everything in the rear area inside of the vehicle. The pavement in the area of the detonation was torn up. A nearby vehicle was damaged. The police estimate the total damages at more than 10,000 marks ($7,000).

As the flames in the vehicle were extinguished, it became clear that this had been an attack. This was confirmed that afternoon by the explosives experts of the LKA. The background and motive are still unclear at the time of publication. The 56 year old Volker Gondrom was not ready to voice an opinion in response to our newspaper's inquiry.

In Bayreuth, where the publicity-shy publisher lives with his family, it has been speculated, as it has in Bindlach, as to whether the attack could have something to do with the latest activities of the entrepreneur against the Scientology psycho-business.

The Gondrom book stores, which include 20 affiliates in Bavaria and the new German states - among other places in Hof, Plauen and Bayreuth - were the subject of recent anonymous letters that suggested they were aligned with Scientology. Strong denials and the accusation that the competition wished to proceed with sordid means against Gondrom resulted in an anti-Scientology meeting to which the company was invited two weeks ago in the Bayreuther city hall. Prominent speakers before an audience of 500 - the most well-known was Scientology critic Renate Hartwig. She was clearly on the side of the entrepreneur and declared: "There is nothing to the reports. Gondrom does everything humanly possible against Scientology."

The investigators are doing everything possible to solve the crime. The police are asking the public for help, and would like to hear form anyone who has seen a suspicious person or vehicle around the scene of the crime at 10:30 that morning. [Phone numbers for the Bayreuth police and the Munich LKA are given.]

Letter to the Editor

Baden-Baden, Germany
November 23, 1997
Sonntag Aktuell

Chimera

In response to:
"Not without my daughter"
by Thomas Satinsky

The reason why my address should not be made known is the following: I have been separated from my husband, Curt Reich, since early 1997. After I moved out, my husband, who is still my husband, terrorized me and our children for months. He actually attacked me, for which reason I sought refuge for 4 weeks in the Baden-Baden woman's home with our children. I can verify that his description of himself as an egomaniacal family father is totally and complete accurate.

We are and never were a happy family, which is what my husband asserted. Furthermore it is not right that, after my moving out, I moved in with another man. After I left Baden-Baden I rented an apartment for me and our children. My husband told everybody that I am a member of the Scientology sect, because that is what everybody is saying now.

My new friend is said to be an "undercover agent" of this sect who was uncovered by him, and the children and I are said to be under his total control.

This is actually Curt Reich's chimera, and he still has not presented any substantiated evidence for his assertion, not even to the court.

In the opinion of Mr. Carlhoff, the sect commissioner of the State of Baden-Wuerttemberg, Oliver Schramm and Eberhard Kleinmann, the alleged "experts," are only private persons whose "expert opinions" lack any official basis in this matter. Just as untrue is the assertion that my husband and I were broken apart by a third person. The only cause of failure in our marriage was the ruthless and egocentric conduct of my husband, Curt Reich.

My husband lives according to the principle, "L'etat, c'est moi." For this reason he has brought upon himself an official decision that he is prohibited, under threat of punishment, to put our children on show in the media. Scientology is not at stake here, here is an egomaniacal actor at work who thinks it is a royal insult that his wife has left him. It was also improper to allege that the address of my new friend was secret.

In closing, I would also like to say that the only thing my husband is concerned about in the dispute over our children is ruining my reputation and taking away from me any possibility of starting over.

Ricarda Reich

---

Battle over children

December 11, 1997
Stern

by Rupp Doinet

In Germany, every third marriage has been breaking up. The ones who suffer the most from this are the children. That is because a ruthless fight over custody often flares up in which anything seems right to some fathers and mothers: libel, extortion, kidnapping and even murder.

He placed an advertisement in the newspaper, large format and with bold, black letters. "Who can help me to find my daughter? 2,000 DM reward." He taped it on the side window of his station wagon and drove like that through the city.

For weeks, complained Curt Reich, 54, he had "no kind of contact, no sign of life from my children." He said they were in danger, were being kept hidden in a secret place from him by his wife's new friend, an "uncovered agent" of Scientology. The art publisher and former race horse owner from Baden-Baden has lost 65 pounds since his children have been away. Once general representative of Christie's English auction house, he used to look like Bud Spencer; today he looks more like Drafi Deutscher. He is very nervous, talks without pause and repeats himself. It is morning and he has already taken a tranquilizer. When he sits down at his desk to work, then it is hardly ever to work; instead he writes page-long letters to his two darlings, Rebecca, 10 and Viktoria, 8. "Every day that keeps us apart makes me more and more forgotten in your hearts." And "being without you is like being dead." He gets no answers. Pale and with rings under his eyes, he has advertised for his children in the ZDF broadcast "Hallo Deutschland." "Because the court and youth office have not helped him, according to the sympathetic reporter, "he is now helping himself." In January 1997, after 23 years, his wife Ricarda packed her things and moved out with both daughters. She had been "caretaker for the children and a dear soul," "gentle and dear," she went to the fitness studio and took their daughters to the ballet, took singing lessons and ran a boutique part-time in the city. Then she met a man who was seven years younger, a psychiatric care assistant whose past history held, Curt Reich was afraid, the worst for his children. A former sect member had told him that the friend was using "a classic Scientology strategy" to separate the family in order to have access to the millions in wealth. An anonymous female caller told him that his wife and children were in danger. In July, his wife completely disappeared with the children; she had gone to her "lover," no address, no phone number. His wife kept him from seeing his children this way for 46 days. "Since she has been in the power of this man, she is like a zombie," he said. She is deliberately and brutally keeping us apart." And for her, any way of doing that is just. The husband as victim in the fight over the children, just like he was recently depicted in the "Spiegel" magazine. Several weeks later, though, his wife answered through the newspapers.

She said her friend was not in any sect and that her husband's assertions were a chimera of an "egomaniacal actor who thinks it is a royal insult that his wife has left him." He had used psychic stress on her, she said. "No way were or are we a happy family, as asserted by my husband." "He was taking away the air I breathe," Ricarda Reich told "Stern" magazine. She said he had hindered friendly contacts with his jealousy and made little sugar dolls out of his children. "He has never seen the people in us, just a picture." After the separation, a reasonable settlement still seemed out of the question. The court gave her temporary custody until the divorce. Curt had agreed, because "children belong to their mother." He was permitted, the judge decided, to see his children every other weekend and for half-day during the week. What followed, she said, was chaos.

After they moved out, her husband had terrorized her for months with his telephone calls and had crouched in the bushes with an eavesdropping device to spy on her, she said. "The children sat in the apartment and whispered about it." When he saw her at the train station holding tightly onto her friend, she said he grabbed her by the hair, dragged her over the platform and urged against separation, after which she fled with her children for four weeks to the Baden-Baden women's home. He had yelled at the children in court, "your mother should die," he had said she was mentally ill, he had put the children on display in the newspapers where all their friends could see. "That was a terrible, unbearable circumstance." Nevertheless he had always been able to see his children, she said, but in a neutral place. "We waited for him at the train station, but he didn't come." Germany, the country of divorce: in the meantime, every third marriage breaks up.

175,550 divorced in 1996, more than ever before. 148,782 underage children were affected. A ruthless battle often flares up over them (....)

Mayor to spend eight years in prison

This is in reference to this article: 990708d.htm, which advances the theory that Scientology may have had something to do with this case.

Neckarwestheim, Germany
January 25, 1996
Berliner Zeitung

by Doris Trapmann

Neckarwestheim's leading city official speculated with 40 million from the community treasury and lost.

Neckarwestheim is not like any other community - either before or after the legal proceedings against its suspended mayor, Horst Armbrust. Any other village of 3,000 residents could only dream of the receipts which the community had recorded with the nuclear energy plant. Since then many of the formerly richest community of southwest Germany have heard of the mayor's coup, which blew up February of last year. Now the community's lead official will be behind bars for eight and a half years.

The state attorney had asked for a full ten years for the almost 63 year old politician. Armbrust has been in custody since February, 1995.

Armbrust embezzled 40 million marks from the community treasury and the Neckarwestheim citizens' foundation - for his "own use," as determined by the 14th criminal chamber of the Stuttgart State Court. Armbrust cashed in on a good part of the "fabulous dividends" which his dubious financial advisor dangled before him. He was "in hot water up to his neck," the judge told him. Armbrust had been trying to escape debt from private real estate deals which had gone bad.

The court did not credit the accused's assertions that he was dealing on behalf of the community and had wanted to gain high dividends for the community. It was determined more that he had violated the Baden-Wuerttemberg community order that foreign investment was not permitted and that the principle of security came before dividends.

It is a hard blow to the community that their formerly stuffed money bags have disappeared, but it will not ruin them. Neckarwestheim continues to be free from debt and in that is far better off than most comparable communities even if the income taxes will not be spread about as much as they once were. In 1991 that was 19.4 million marks.

The treasurer has taken the 35 million marks which Armbrust had lost from the community chest off the books, but it has not yet been written off. Neckarwestheim is asking for at least a part of the money in civil court from twelve of Armbrust's advisors.

Only "crumbs" can be gotten from Armbrust himself, as a Heilbronn State Assembly Office representative expressed it. A mayor is, according to office law, liable if he is grossly negligent or has acted intentionally. The mayor's real estate holdings belong to the banks, otherwise nothing is there. His holdings have been cut in half; anything remaining will be mortgaged as soon as possible.

It will be determined after next Sunday who will be in charge of the community. Presumably it will be an "outsider" who has not been caught up in Armbrust's machinations.

dpa