 is intimidation , pure and simple . " Officials explained that precisely because of Germany 's Nazi past , Germany took a determined stance against all " radical cults and sects , including right @-@ wing Nazi groups " , and not just against Scientology . Kohl 's Christian Democratic Union party denounced the letter as " absurd " and cited German court rulings stating that Scientology had primarily economic goals and could legitimately be referred to using phrases such as a " contemptuous cartel of oppression " .   In February 1997 , a United States immigration court judge granted asylum to a German Scientologist who claimed she would be subject to religious persecution in her homeland . In April 1997 , John Travolta met personally with U.S. President Bill Clinton at a conference in Philadelphia . Travolta later said Clinton assured him that he would " really love to help " with the " issue over in Germany with Scientology " . According to Travolta , Clinton recalled that " he had a roommate years ago who was a Scientologist and had really liked him , and respected his views on it " , stating that Scientologists " were given an unfair hand in [ Germany ] and that he wanted to fix it " . In September 1997 , John Travolta , Chick Corea and fellow Scientologist Isaac Hayes were heard by the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe ( CSCE , also known as the Helsinki Commission ) , voicing their complaints about the treatment of Scientologists in Germany , and had a briefing with United States National Security Advisor Sandy Berger , whom Clinton had assigned to be " the administration 's Scientology point person " . The German ambassador responded with a letter to the CSCE stating that the German government had come to the conclusion that Scientology 's " pseudo @-@ scientific courses can seriously jeopardize individuals ' mental and physical health and that it exploits its members " , adding that " membership can lead to psychological and physical dependency , to financial ruin , and even to suicide . In addition , there are indications that Scientology poses a threat to Germany 's basic political principles . "   A United Nations report in April 1998 raised concerns about the violation of individual rights posed by sect filters . However , it rejected the comparison of the treatment of Scientologists with that of Jews during the Nazi era .   In 2000 , the German Stern magazine published the results of its investigation of the asylum case . It asserted that several rejection letters which the woman had submitted as part of her asylum application – ostensibly from potential employers who were rejecting her because she was a Scientologist – had in fact been written by fellow Scientologists at her request and that of Scientology 's Office of Special Affairs , and that she was in personal financial trouble and about to go on trial for tax evasion at the time she applied for asylum . On a 2000 visit to Clearwater , Florida , Ursula Caberta of the Scientology Task Force for the Hamburg Interior Authority likewise alleged that the asylum case had been part of an " orchestrated effort " by Scientology undertaken " for political gain " , and " a spectacular abuse of the U.S. system " . German expatriate Scientologists resident in Clearwater , in turn , accused Caberta of stoking a " hate campaign " in Germany that had " ruined the lives and fortunes of scores of Scientologists " and maintained that Scientologists had not " exaggerated their plight for political gain in the United States . " Mark Rathbun , a ( former ) top Church of Scientology official , said that although Scientology had not orchestrated the case , " there would have been nothing improper if it had . "   In 2003 , Joachim Güntner , writing in the Swiss Neue Zürcher Zeitung , noted that Gerhard Besier , a German Christian theologian , director of the Hannah Arendt Institute for Research into Totalitarianism in Dresden and recipient of an honorary doctorate from Lund University , Sweden , for his championing of religious freedom , had been pressured to forego publication of his scientific study of Scientology after having found himself the subject of widespread criticism in the German media for advocating a more tolerant attitude towards Scientology . Güntner concluded that " alarmism " had " triumphed " over science and noted an apparent lack of confidence in Germany 's ability to engage in open public discourse on the matter .   The U.S. Department of State 's 2012 report on religious freedom in Germany , published in 2013 , stated that " The status of the Church of Scientology remains in limbo . The Constitutional Court and various courts at the state level have not explicitly ruled that Scientology is a religion . Government agencies at the federal and state level have rules and procedures that discriminate against Scientology as a group and against its members . Four of the major political parties ( the Christian Democratic Union , Christian Social Union , Social Democratic Party , and Free Democratic Party ) ban Scientologists from party membership . [ ... ] Scientologists reported instances of governmental discrimination . Although courts at the state and federal level condemned the improper use of so @-@ called ' sect filters ' to blacklist and boycott Scientologists
Ġis Ġintimidation Ġ, Ġpure Ġand Ġsimple Ġ. Ġ" ĠOfficials Ġexplained Ġthat Ġprecisely Ġbecause Ġof ĠGermany Ġ' s ĠNazi Ġpast Ġ, ĠGermany Ġtook Ġa Ġdetermined Ġstance Ġagainst Ġall Ġ" Ġradical Ġcult s Ġand Ġsects Ġ, Ġincluding Ġright Ġ@ - @ Ġwing ĠNazi Ġgroups Ġ" Ġ, Ġand Ġnot Ġjust Ġagainst ĠScientology Ġ. ĠKoh l Ġ' s ĠChristian ĠDemocratic ĠUnion Ġparty Ġdenounced Ġthe Ġletter Ġas Ġ" Ġabsurd Ġ" Ġand Ġcited ĠGerman Ġcourt Ġrulings Ġstating Ġthat ĠScientology Ġhad Ġprimarily Ġeconomic Ġgoals Ġand Ġcould Ġlegitimately Ġbe Ġreferred Ġto Ġusing Ġphrases Ġsuch Ġas Ġa Ġ" Ġcontempt uous Ġcartel Ġof Ġoppression Ġ" Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠIn ĠFebruary Ġ1997 Ġ, Ġa ĠUnited ĠStates Ġimmigration Ġcourt Ġjudge Ġgranted Ġasylum Ġto Ġa ĠGerman ĠScient ologist Ġwho Ġclaimed Ġshe Ġwould Ġbe Ġsubject Ġto Ġreligious Ġpersecution Ġin Ġher Ġhomeland Ġ. ĠIn ĠApril Ġ1997 Ġ, ĠJohn ĠT rav olt a Ġmet Ġpersonally Ġwith ĠU . S . ĠPresident ĠBill ĠClinton Ġat Ġa Ġconference Ġin ĠPhiladelphia Ġ. ĠT rav olt a Ġlater Ġsaid ĠClinton Ġassured Ġhim Ġthat Ġhe Ġwould Ġ" Ġreally Ġlove Ġto Ġhelp Ġ" Ġwith Ġthe Ġ" Ġissue Ġover Ġin ĠGermany Ġwith ĠScientology Ġ" Ġ. ĠAccording Ġto ĠT rav olt a Ġ, ĠClinton Ġrecalled Ġthat Ġ" Ġhe Ġhad Ġa Ġroommate Ġyears Ġago Ġwho Ġwas Ġa ĠScient ologist Ġand Ġhad Ġreally Ġliked Ġhim Ġ, Ġand Ġrespected Ġhis Ġviews Ġon Ġit Ġ" Ġ, Ġstating Ġthat ĠScient ologists Ġ" Ġwere Ġgiven Ġan Ġunfair Ġhand Ġin Ġ[ ĠGermany Ġ] Ġand Ġthat Ġhe Ġwanted Ġto Ġfix Ġit Ġ" Ġ. ĠIn ĠSeptember Ġ1997 Ġ, ĠJohn ĠT rav olt a Ġ, ĠChick ĠCore a Ġand Ġfellow ĠScient ologist ĠIsaac ĠHayes Ġwere Ġheard Ġby Ġthe ĠCommission Ġon ĠSecurity Ġand ĠCooperation Ġin ĠEurope Ġ( ĠCS CE Ġ, Ġalso Ġknown Ġas Ġthe ĠHelsinki ĠCommission Ġ) Ġ, Ġvoicing Ġtheir Ġcomplaints Ġabout Ġthe Ġtreatment Ġof ĠScient ologists Ġin ĠGermany Ġ, Ġand Ġhad Ġa Ġbriefing Ġwith ĠUnited ĠStates ĠNational ĠSecurity ĠAdvisor ĠSandy ĠBerger Ġ, Ġwhom ĠClinton Ġhad Ġassigned Ġto Ġbe Ġ" Ġthe Ġadministration Ġ' s ĠScientology Ġpoint Ġperson Ġ" Ġ. ĠThe ĠGerman Ġambassador Ġresponded Ġwith Ġa Ġletter Ġto Ġthe ĠCS CE Ġstating Ġthat Ġthe ĠGerman Ġgovernment Ġhad Ġcome Ġto Ġthe Ġconclusion Ġthat ĠScientology Ġ' s Ġ" Ġpseudo Ġ@ - @ Ġscientific Ġcourses Ġcan Ġseriously Ġjeopard ize Ġindividuals Ġ' Ġmental Ġand Ġphysical Ġhealth Ġand Ġthat Ġit Ġexploits Ġits Ġmembers Ġ" Ġ, Ġadding Ġthat Ġ" Ġmembership Ġcan Ġlead Ġto Ġpsychological Ġand Ġphysical Ġdependency Ġ, Ġto Ġfinancial Ġruin Ġ, Ġand Ġeven Ġto Ġsuicide Ġ. ĠIn Ġaddition Ġ, Ġthere Ġare Ġindications Ġthat ĠScientology Ġposes Ġa Ġthreat Ġto ĠGermany Ġ' s Ġbasic Ġpolitical Ġprinciples Ġ. Ġ" Ġ Ġ ĠA ĠUnited ĠNations Ġreport Ġin ĠApril Ġ1998 Ġraised Ġconcerns Ġabout Ġthe Ġviolation Ġof Ġindividual Ġrights Ġposed Ġby Ġsect Ġfilters Ġ. ĠHowever Ġ, Ġit Ġrejected Ġthe Ġcomparison Ġof Ġthe Ġtreatment Ġof ĠScient ologists Ġwith Ġthat Ġof ĠJews Ġduring Ġthe ĠNazi Ġera Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠIn Ġ2000 Ġ, Ġthe ĠGerman ĠStern Ġmagazine Ġpublished Ġthe Ġresults Ġof Ġits Ġinvestigation Ġof Ġthe Ġasylum Ġcase Ġ. ĠIt Ġasserted Ġthat Ġseveral Ġrejection Ġletters Ġwhich Ġthe Ġwoman Ġhad Ġsubmitted Ġas Ġpart Ġof Ġher Ġasylum Ġapplication ĠâĢĵ Ġostensibly Ġfrom Ġpotential Ġemployers Ġwho Ġwere Ġrejecting Ġher Ġbecause Ġshe Ġwas Ġa ĠScient ologist ĠâĢĵ Ġhad Ġin Ġfact Ġbeen Ġwritten Ġby Ġfellow ĠScient ologists Ġat Ġher Ġrequest Ġand Ġthat Ġof ĠScientology Ġ' s ĠOffice Ġof ĠSpecial ĠAffairs Ġ, Ġand Ġthat Ġshe Ġwas Ġin Ġpersonal Ġfinancial Ġtrouble Ġand Ġabout Ġto Ġgo Ġon Ġtrial Ġfor Ġtax Ġevasion Ġat Ġthe Ġtime Ġshe Ġapplied Ġfor Ġasylum Ġ. ĠOn Ġa Ġ2000 Ġvisit Ġto ĠClear water Ġ, ĠFlorida Ġ, ĠUrs ula ĠCab ert a Ġof Ġthe ĠScientology ĠTask ĠForce Ġfor Ġthe ĠHamburg ĠInterior ĠAuthority Ġlikewise Ġalleged Ġthat Ġthe Ġasylum Ġcase Ġhad Ġbeen Ġpart Ġof Ġan Ġ" Ġorchestrated Ġeffort Ġ" Ġby ĠScientology Ġundertaken Ġ" Ġfor Ġpolitical Ġgain Ġ" Ġ, Ġand Ġ" Ġa Ġspectacular Ġabuse Ġof Ġthe ĠU . S . Ġsystem Ġ" Ġ. ĠGerman Ġexp atri ate ĠScient ologists Ġresident Ġin ĠClear water Ġ, Ġin Ġturn Ġ, Ġaccused ĠCab ert a Ġof Ġst oking Ġa Ġ" Ġhate Ġcampaign Ġ" Ġin ĠGermany Ġthat Ġhad Ġ" Ġruined Ġthe Ġlives Ġand Ġfortunes Ġof Ġscores Ġof ĠScient ologists Ġ" Ġand Ġmaintained Ġthat ĠScient ologists Ġhad Ġnot Ġ" Ġexaggerated Ġtheir Ġplight Ġfor Ġpolitical Ġgain Ġin Ġthe ĠUnited ĠStates Ġ. Ġ" ĠMark ĠRath b un Ġ, Ġa Ġ( Ġformer Ġ) Ġtop ĠChurch Ġof ĠScientology Ġofficial Ġ, Ġsaid Ġthat Ġalthough ĠScientology Ġhad Ġnot Ġorchestrated Ġthe Ġcase Ġ, Ġ" Ġthere Ġwould Ġhave Ġbeen Ġnothing Ġimproper Ġif Ġit Ġhad Ġ. Ġ" Ġ Ġ ĠIn Ġ2003 Ġ, ĠJo ach im ĠG Ã¼ nt ner Ġ, Ġwriting Ġin Ġthe ĠSwiss ĠNe ue ĠZ Ã¼r cher ĠZeit ung Ġ, Ġnoted Ġthat ĠGer hard ĠBes ier Ġ, Ġa ĠGerman ĠChristian Ġtheolog ian Ġ, Ġdirector Ġof Ġthe ĠHannah ĠAre nd t ĠInstitute Ġfor ĠResearch Ġinto ĠTotal itarian ism Ġin ĠDresden Ġand Ġrecipient Ġof Ġan Ġhonorary Ġdoctor ate Ġfrom ĠLund ĠUniversity Ġ, ĠSweden Ġ, Ġfor Ġhis Ġchampion ing Ġof Ġreligious Ġfreedom Ġ, Ġhad Ġbeen Ġpressured Ġto Ġfore go Ġpublication Ġof Ġhis Ġscientific Ġstudy Ġof ĠScientology Ġafter Ġhaving Ġfound Ġhimself Ġthe Ġsubject Ġof Ġwidespread Ġcriticism Ġin Ġthe ĠGerman Ġmedia Ġfor Ġadvocating Ġa Ġmore Ġtolerant Ġattitude Ġtowards ĠScientology Ġ. ĠG Ã¼ nt ner Ġconcluded Ġthat Ġ" Ġalarm ism Ġ" Ġhad Ġ" Ġtri ump hed Ġ" Ġover Ġscience Ġand Ġnoted Ġan Ġapparent Ġlack Ġof Ġconfidence Ġin ĠGermany Ġ' s Ġability Ġto Ġengage Ġin Ġopen Ġpublic Ġdiscourse Ġon Ġthe Ġmatter Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠThe ĠU . S . ĠDepartment Ġof ĠState Ġ' s Ġ2012 Ġreport Ġon Ġreligious Ġfreedom Ġin ĠGermany Ġ, Ġpublished Ġin Ġ2013 Ġ, Ġstated Ġthat Ġ" ĠThe Ġstatus Ġof Ġthe ĠChurch Ġof ĠScientology Ġremains Ġin Ġlimbo Ġ. ĠThe ĠConstitutional ĠCourt Ġand Ġvarious Ġcourts Ġat Ġthe Ġstate Ġlevel Ġhave Ġnot Ġexplicitly Ġruled Ġthat ĠScientology Ġis Ġa Ġreligion Ġ. ĠGovernment Ġagencies Ġat Ġthe Ġfederal Ġand Ġstate Ġlevel Ġhave Ġrules Ġand Ġprocedures Ġthat Ġdiscriminate Ġagainst ĠScientology Ġas Ġa Ġgroup Ġand Ġagainst Ġits Ġmembers Ġ. ĠFour Ġof Ġthe Ġmajor Ġpolitical Ġparties Ġ( Ġthe ĠChristian ĠDemocratic ĠUnion Ġ, ĠChristian ĠSocial ĠUnion Ġ, ĠSocial ĠDemocratic ĠParty Ġ, Ġand ĠFree ĠDemocratic ĠParty Ġ) Ġban ĠScient ologists Ġfrom Ġparty Ġmembership Ġ. Ġ[ Ġ... Ġ] ĠScient ologists Ġreported Ġinstances Ġof Ġgovernmental Ġdiscrimination Ġ. ĠAlthough Ġcourts Ġat Ġthe Ġstate Ġand Ġfederal Ġlevel Ġcondemned Ġthe Ġimproper Ġuse Ġof Ġso Ġ@ - @ Ġcalled Ġ' Ġsect Ġfilters Ġ' Ġto Ġblacklist Ġand Ġboycott ĠScient ologists