=== Falun Gong
1. China Punishes Falun Gong Leaders
2. China Defends, Details Drive to Crush Falun Gong
3. Detained falungong supporters go on hunger strike
4. Falun Gong Slams China for 'Evil Persecution'
5. Falun Gong demands China rights
6. Hong Kong Detains Adherents Of Sect Denounced by Beijing
7. Falun Gong Sect Meets in Hong Kong

=== Waco / Branch Davidians
8. Ex-Prosecutor Charged After Waco Case Wants Notes Taken By Investigators

=== Scientology
9. Scientology hearing founders in jabs, jeers

» Part 2

=== Islam
10. Nigeria Judge Sets Date for Flogging
11. Nigerian teen mother fears lashing
12. Women's group seeks to stop girl's terrible ordeal
13. Ban on fatwas on hold in Bangladesh
14. Islamic groups urged to shun militant image
15. Shariat to be made supreme law: Moin

=== Mormonism
16. Shipps' LDS essays honest, objective
17. Scholar's passion: studying LDS faith

=== Hate Groups
18. Bertollini says police beat him up

=== Rebirthing
19. Trial Delayed For 2 Therapists
20. Journalists Fight For Open Trial

» Part 3

=== Other News
21. Cannibalism Alleged in Disappearance
22. Guru shrugs off sex allegations (Sai Baba)
23. Purging of 'demons' nets millions (UCKG)
24. Yogic flyers crash out of British politics
25. Yogic fliers come down to earth
26. The faithful stand watch over Temple
27. Religious Theme Park to Open near Orlando, Fla.

=== Noted
28. Power in the pulpit (T.D. Jakes)
29. Garden of Eden in Turkey, says Bible scholar
30. The Rastafarians are receiving


=== Falun Gong

1. China Punishes Falun Gong Leaders
AP, Jan. 15, 2001
http://www.latimes.com/
[Story no longer online? Read this]
BEIJING--In a rare disclosure, China said Monday it has punished 242 organizers of the Falun Gong spiritual movement and sent an undisclosed number of followers to labor camps during an 18 -month-old crackdown.

The rare disclosure by the government appeared aimed at countering claims that thousands of sect followers are in jails or labor camps and came in the wake of a major weekend gathering of Falun Gong members in Hong Kong.

Since outlawing Falun Gong in July 1999, Beijing has infrequently provided figures on those punished by courts and never given an accurate tally of the numbers detained outside of the court system.

A Hong Kong-based rights group says at least 10,000 Falun Gong members are being held in more than 300 labor camps, with one camp for women in northeastern Changchun city holding 560. The Information Center for Human Rights and Democracy has also alleged 98 deaths of sect members, mostly at police hands, while in custody.

Under China's legal system, police have the authority to send suspects to labor camps for up to three years without trial. To combat the widely popular movement, China also set up special detention, or ''transformation,'' centers to force sect members to recant.
(...)

On Monday, Falun Gong members said they planned another global meeting of the group in the Chinese territory of Hong Kong in about a year. The group said 1,200 people, including 700 from overseas, attended Sunday's event.
Hong Kong officials said they would review the event to make sure it was ''purely religious or cultural.''

Falun Gong said it suspects government officials who rented an auditorium in City Hall for the event may be looking for reasons to restrict its activities.

''I guess they have received great pressure from the central government,'' said local Falun Gong spokesman Kan Hung-cheung, who recently was singled out by China's Xinhua News Agency as ''a backbone member of the evil cult.''
[...more...]   [Need the full story? Read this]


2. China Defends, Details Drive to Crush Falun Gong
Reuters, Jan. 15, 2001
http://www.latimes.com/
[Story no longer online? Read this]
BEIJING--China defended Monday its crackdown on the Falun Gong spiritual movement, saying the 18-month drive condemned abroad for its ruthlessness enjoyed widespread public support and was based on Chinese law.

A statement by China's cabinet, the latest salvo in an intensifying propaganda
war against Falun Gong, did not mention a weekend rally in Hong Kong at which 1,000 supporters from around the world appealed for an end to the crackdown.

In an apparent bid to address frequent reports Beijing was persecuting religious believers, the State Council Information Office said Falun Gong was a ''social cancer.''
(...)

China has declared victory over Falun Gong repeatedly, but the group has staged almost daily protests in Tiananmen Square in central Beijing demanding official recognition as a religion.
[...more...]   [Need the full story? Read this]


3. Detained falungong supporters go on hunger strike
Radio Australia, Jan. 15, 2001
http://www.abc.net.au/
[Story no longer online? Read this]
A spokeswoman for the falungong meditation sect in Hong Kong says four practitioners who were detained while attempting to enter the territory, have gone on hunger strike.

The four were among 13 people who were barred from entering Hong Kong to attend a falungong conference.
[...more...]   [Need the full story? Read this]


4. Falun Gong Slams China for 'Evil Persecution'
Reuters, Jan. 14, 2001
http://www.latimes.com/
[Story no longer online? Read this]
HONG KONG--Followers of the Falun Gong spiritual movement slammed China's top leader at a conference in Hong Kong Sunday for what they said was a campaign of ''evil persecution'' against their group.

About 1,000 Falun Gong supporters from around the world attended the all-day gathering in City Hall, which is owned by the Hong Kong government. They met on Chinese soil in defiance of mainland leaders who have outlawed the movement.
(...)

Falun Gong is legal in Hong Kong which has retained a high degree of autonomy since the former British colony reverted to Chinese rule in mid-1997.

A Hong Kong-based human rights group said four Falun Gong practitioners had gone on hunger strike at the Hong Kong airport where they were being detained.
(...)

Of the 12, seven were from Japan, three from Australia and two from the United States, the center said.

Four of them were later allowed into Hong Kong. Six from Japan were deported Sunday, after two from Australia and the United States were sent back Saturday, the center said.

A spokeswoman for Falun Gong in Hong Kong, Sharon Xu, said that immigration officials used violence against the detainees and some were forcibly lifted onto aircraft.

Xu said they were barred from entering Hong Kong because they were on China's blacklist and that their detention was unlawful.
(...)

Falun Gong believers attending Sunday's conference accused Chinese President Jiang Zemin of having ''undeniable responsibility'' for what they said was the ''evil'' and ''brutal'' persecution of the movement in mainland China.

The movement says China has tortured 120 followers to death while in custody.
[...more...]   [Need the full story? Read this]


5. Falun Gong demands China rights
BBC, Jan. 14, 2001
http://news.bbc.co.uk/
[Story no longer online? Read this]
A big conference of the Falun Gong spiritual movement in Hong Kong has bitterly criticised China's top leader for the campaign of suppression against it.

About 1,000 members from around the world heard harrowing allegations of persecution on mainland China and called on President Jiang Zemin to halt the crackdown.
(...)

The Beijing Daily has launched a fresh editorial attack, accusing Falun Gong of teaming up with unidentified ''anti-China'' forces abroad to sow discord and destabilise the country.

Government statements have expressed alarm over a message by the movement's exiled leader, Li Hongzhi, appearing to say that followers are justified in resisting state suppression of it.

''Li Hongzhi's claim that he doesn't take part in politics and doesn't oppose the government is a cheap lie,'' a Beijing Daily editorial said.

On Saturday, around 800 Falun Gong adherents performed exercises in a public park in Hong Kong, forming their bodies into the Chinese characters for ''truthfulness'', ''benevolence'' and ''tolerance''.
[...more...]   [Need the full story? Read this]


6. Hong Kong Detains Adherents Of Sect Denounced by Beijing
Washington Post, Jan. 14, 2001
http://www.washingtonpost.com/
[Story no longer online? Read this]
HONG KONG, Jan. 13 -- Hong Kong immigration officials drew criticism from human rights groups today for detaining 12 practitioners of the Falun Gong spiritual movement who were trying to attend a weekend conference that has antagonized China and highlighted the former British colony's awkward relationship with Beijing.

The practitioners -- including seven Japanese and at least one Australian -- were stopped at Hong Kong's main airport. Some were deported, but most remained in custody nearly 24 hours after their arrival.

Immigration officials offered no explanation for the detentions, citing a government policy against commenting on individual cases. But the detentions come during an escalating battle between Falun Gong and the Chinese government, which banned the sect in 1999 and denounced it as an ''evil cult.''

Several human rights advocates expressed concern that the Hong Kong government was harassing legal visitors in a misguided effort to prove its loyalty to Beijing.

''Hong Kong is a free society,'' said Law Yuk-kai, director of Hong Kong Human Rights Monitor. ''We do not discriminate against visitors at the border on the basis of their religious or political affiliations. . . . I'm afraid the only logical explanation in this case is that the Hong Kong government is seeking to please the central authority'' in Beijing.

Barring visitors for religious or political reasons would be a departure for Hong Kong. The agreement under which it was returned to Chinese sovereignty in 1997 promised to preserve individual liberties under a ''one China, two systems'' formula. Under the formula, Falun Gong remains legal in Hong Kong.
(...)

Falun Gong's decision to stage demonstrations here has created a vexing dilemma for Hong Kong officials and business leaders. They want to reverse the spreading international perception that they have allowed Beijing to slowly squeeze the life out of democratic notions such as freedom of speech and worship or the rule of law, but they dread antagonizing their mainland overseers.

Chinese authorities have lashed out against Falun Gong with renewed vigor in recent weeks, launching an aggressive attack in the state-controlled media.
(...)

Falun Gong has also ratcheted up the conflict. Observers of the movement say they discern a more strident tone on the groups' official Web site.
(...)

Notably, Falun Gong leaders have begun to attack Chinese President Jiang Zemin by name. Fliers vilify him as a short-tempered autocrat who is personally directing the campaign against the group in defiance of other leaders' reservations.

The Chinese government has responded with a wave of new arrests and harsh prison sentences for followers.
(...)

Organizers of today's march charged that Hong Kong immigration officials had selectively detained practitioners with the most compelling stories of abuse to keep them from meeting with reporters.

Chen Xianwen, a Falun Gong believer who came to the conference from Boston, worried that Hong Kong immigration officers had detained her daughter, Yu Shan, because she would describe how Beijing police beat her in 1999. Chen said she watched from the opposite side of the immigration checkpoint Friday night as Hong Kong authorities dragged her daughter off for interrogation.

''I just can't believe this would happen here, too,'' said Chen. ''Falun Gong is legal in Hong Kong. It's supposed to be 'two systems.' ''
[...more...]   [Need the full story? Read this]


7. Falun Gong Sect Meets in Hong Kong
Associated Press, Jan. 14, 2001
http://www.washingtonpost.com/
[Story no longer online? Read this]
HONG KONG -- - The Falun Gong meditation sect, outlawed and often subject to violent crackdowns in mainland China, held a global conference in Hong Kong Sunday where followers lashed out at Beijing's suppression.
(...)

Falun Gong is demanding the right to practice freely in communist China and an end to the crackdowns that it claims have resulted in the torture and killings of 120 followers at the hands the mainland authorities.

''There's no human rights in China because you cannot even say a word about Falun Gong in Tiananmen Square,'' complained Hong Kong practitioner Fiona Ching.
Beijing authorities round up and often beat Falun Gong practitioners on the mainland, but the sect remains legal in Hong Kong.

About 900 Falun Gong adherents turned out for Sunday's well-publicized gathering, which has drawn sharp criticism from pro-Beijing forces furious that the ''evil cult'' can attack Chinese policies while on Chinese soil.

The meeting included 700 overseas followers from 23 countries - evidence, Falun Gong said, of the movement's appeal.

Hong Kong barred 13 practitioners from entering the territory but said late Saturday it was because they failed to meet visa requirements, not because of their Falun Gong affiliation.

A drawing of the movement's founder, Li Hongzhi, seated in a Buddhist meditation pose, was the central backdrop on a stage where Falun Gong members spoke about their experiences in the group.
[...more...]   [Need the full story? Read this]


=== Waco / Branch Davidians

8. Ex-Prosecutor Charged After Waco Case Wants Notes Taken By Investigators
St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Jan. 11, 2001
http://beta.yellowbrix.com/
[Story no longer online? Read this]
The lawyer for Bill Johnston, the former federal prosecutor charged in the aftermath of the Branch Davidian case, is demanding investigators' notes of their interviews with him.

Summaries of the interviews are ''susceptible to paraphrasing ... and tai loring'' by investigators ''to better fit the prosecution theories of the case,'' contends Johnston's lawyer, Michael Kennedy of New York City.

Whether the Office of Special Counsel John C. Danforth must turn over the notes is expected to be among the topics at a hearing Tuesday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mary Ann Medler.
(...)

Also pending is a decision on a motion Kennedy filed in December asking that the indictment be dismissed because Danforth's office singled out Johnston for prosecution after ''acknowledging that statements of numerous government officials investigated by the (Office of the Special Counsel) were misleading, false and obstructive.''
[...more...]   [Need the full story? Read this]


=== Scientology

9. Scientology hearing founders in jabs, jeers
St. Petersburg Times, Jan. 14, 2001
http://www.sptimes.com/
[Story no longer online? Read this]
They took separate elevators up to the courtroom on the third floor.
They entered the courtroom from separate doors, one from the back, one from the side.

Then the well-suited lawyers for each camp argued about how close they could get to each other.

Never have 10 feet been so important to two groups.

Ten feet -- that's five paces -- has become ultra-important to downtown Clearwater's archenemies, the Church of Scientology and the Lisa McPherson Trust, an anti-Scientology watchdog group.

It's how far apart the members of each group must stay from each other, according to an injunction issued Nov. 30 by Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Court Judge Thomas Penick.

On Friday, Penick faced the parties again at the St. Petersburg Judicial Building as each accused the other of crossing the line. Each side was hoping Penick would find the other in contempt of court, and maybe even toss them in jail.
(...)

At Friday's hearing, the church critics came with props: a megaphone, like the ones they use to picket the church, and ''The Threep,'' which Minton uses when he protests.

The Threep?
''Threep means three P's, Penick Picket Pole,'' Minton explained later.

It is a retractable pole that stretches to 10 feet with a copy of the injunction hanging at the end. The Threep is also equipped with a bicycle horn and a flashing red warning light.

Across the courtroom, Scientologists ignored the critics, even as they made loud comments during breaks intended for the church members to hear. Ben Shaw, director of external affairs for the church's Flag Service Organization in Clearwater, didn't find the props amusing.

''He's making a mockery of the court,'' Shaw said.

The critics also wore white roses on their lapels. Members said it was a new statement symbolizing the White Rose, a group of German students and academics who protested Nazi Germany's Third Reich during World War II.
[...more...]   [Need the full story? Read this]

* Years ago, a group of people who had objected to Hare Krishnas soliciting
money at an airport were told by a judge to keep at least 10 feet between
themselves and the solicitors. They did. They brought 10-foot poles with
them, with at the end a sign that read, ''A judge told us to stay at
least 10 feet away from any Hare Krishna sollicitors. We suggest you do the
same.''

Scientology, which increasingly acts like a hate group, constantly harasses
members and supporters of the Lisa McPherson Trust. Video footage of
Scientology hate actions is available at the Lisa McPherson Trust website.

Scientology is also notorious for making a mockery of the legal system and
courts around the world, following the suggestions of the cult's founder and
master, L. Ron Hubbard:

''The purpose of the suit is to harass and discourage rather than to win. The
law can be used very easily to harass, and enough harassment on somebody who
is simply on the thin edge anyway, well knowing that he is not authorized,
will generally be sufficient to cause his professional decease. If possible,
of course, ruin him utterly.''
- L. Ron Hubbard, A Manual on the Dissemination of Material, 1955

More on L. Ron Hubbard

» Part 2