Sent to the Melbourne HeraldSun newspaper this evening. For those of you who don't know him (most of you), Andrew Bolt is a regular columnist with the paper. He is known for stepping on the toes of bleeding hearts everywhere, and appears unafraid to kick sacred cows. His articles on topical issues such as censorship and the stolen generation here in Australia are fun and informative to read.

Date: Wed, 27 Mar 2002 00:09:59 -0800 (PST)

From: "Chocolate Biscuit" <chocbikky@yahoo.com> |
Subject: Racial and Religious Tolerance. Act 1.

To: bolta@heraldsun.com.au

Dear Mr. Bolt,

I am aware that you would get plenty of mail each day regarding dastardly deeds thoughout Melbourne and Australia. That said, I would like to add mine to your inbox.

As you are aware, the Racial and Religious Tolerance Act was passed into the law books January this year.

After a bit of fuss about our civil liberties and freedom of speech, not to mention my own private rantings about the thought police that populate our current cabinet, it was accepted as a viable work of law.

(In advance, please let me apologise for any over-emotional language).

Well, this nasty peice of legislature has been enacted in the last few days. As a regular reader of a popular anti-Church of Scientology newsgroup, one article has stuck in my mind. This is a plea for assistance from a lady in Queensland who maintains a website that is critical of cults and abuses by churches.

The Church of Scientology in Melbourne is accusing her of religious vilification.

I have copied the text of her message below, and one thing I am wondering is, whatever happened to our so-called freedom of speech? Since when is it illegal for someone in Brisbane to comment freely on a purported religious group? Particularly one with a nasty habit of litigation on the most flimsy of grounds.

It is due to the Church of Scientology's tendency of attacking critical thought in any way they can get away with, that I am mailing this anonymously. They have a long history of barratry in courts around the world, and this has been documented on websites specific to such documentation.

http://www.xenu.net, http://www.lermanet.com, and http://cisar.org/ are good places to start if you wish to look further.

I am the first to confess to a cowardly preference for self-preservation.

I am also concerned that if it has only taken this group two months to put together a case for vilification for one person's reasonable and well-thought out site, then how many others are in the sights of this church and other groups?

How in the name of freedom are we ever to be allowed access to critical thought of differing opinions if said critical thought is hidden by a wall of politically correct fairy tales and doublespeak?

I'll let Jan speak for herself.

Start message:

"Jan Groenveld" <Jan.Groenveld@uq.net.au> wrote in message news:Pine.OSF.4.30.0203260639451.9570-100000@fox.uq.net.au...

Folks, the "rev" Mary Anderson, Public Affairs, Melbourne Australia Org, has takem me to the Equal Opportunity Commison of Victoria (Australia) and charged me with "religious vilification" under their act.

8. Religious vilification unlawful (1) A person must not, on the ground of religious belief or activity of another person or class ofpersons, engage in conduct that incites hatret against, serious contempt for, or revulsion or sever ridicule of, that other person or class of persons.

11. Exceptions

A person does not contravene sections 7 or 8 if the person establishes that the person's conduct was engaged in reasonable and in good faith --

(a) in the performance, exhibition or distribution of artistic work; or (b) in the course of any statement, publicitation, discussion or debate made of held, or any other conduct in gaged in, fo (i) any genuine academic, artistic, religious or scientific purpose; or (ii) any purpose that is in the public interest; or (c) in making or publishing a fair and accurate report of any event or matter of public interest.

Mary Anderson has charged me on the basis of my web site contents, namely:

The Anderson Report which she says was long ago overturned and described in the Victorian parliament in 1987 as 'draconian' and that this material is not biased, not factual and no current and does not fit into any catagory of helpful information,

She also refers EOCV to the following as "lurid and patently false"

What the Church of Scientology does want you to know Prisoners of Saint Hill Forced abbortions in Scientology

as mere examples.

She refers to 'discredited author Russell Miller" with regard to comments on the site about Hubbards statements about his life and war record which she states as been proven true by documentary evidence ......

She further states that there is also deliberate misinformation concerning mentally disturbed persons, that although such persons have been made prisoners in mental hospitals, the Church has had no part in any such practice and is strongly opposed to it.

She blurbs on about you apostates not being reliablewitnesses, and that the presentation of this material in the guise of information contravenes the law.

She then states that persons who know little or nothing of Sceintolofy and who take this site at face value could hardly fail to be infected with "severe ridicule" or "serious contempt ofr" if not "hatred" of the subject of the site.

She then asks that they demand I be made to remove the site.

How's that?

Any suggestions on putting together a GOOD case withing the next 48 hours -- which is all I have to do it.

Thanks in Advance

Jan Groenveld

-- Cult Awareness & Information Centre (OZ = Australia C.A.I.C Ph. 61-(0)7-3216 8514 _--_|\ Web Page: http://www.caic.org.au / x <- Brisbane E-Mail:

JanG@caic.org.au | OZ | Jan.Groenveld@uq.net.au \_.--._/ Jan.g@bigpond.net.au v Jan's Personal Page:

http://www.uq.net.au/~zzjgroen

End message.

I am hoping that this instance of an attempt to stifle free speech and thought is something you feel requires further investigation. If there is any you need to know, feel free to email me.

Oh, a good Australian site about the doings of the Church of Scientology is http://www.suburbia.com.au/~fun/scn/ .

Thanking you for your time and patience.

Regards,

Biscuit.

Preferably tim tams.

ps. Please note, all levity aside, this is a serious issue not only for myself, but many others lurking in the world at large. Thanks again.

cc. alt.religion.scientology

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