 complaint about discrimination from Scientology lawyers , some American companies such as General Electric , IBM and Ford Motor Company instructed their German subsidiaries to cease the use of protective declarations .   The city @-@ state of Hamburg set up a full @-@ time office dedicated to opposing Scientology , the Scientology Task Force for the Hamburg Interior Authority , under the leadership of Ursula Caberta . In 2005 , in a case brought by a Scientologist , the Federal Administrative Court of Germany ordered the city of Hamburg to cease recommending the use of protective declarations to its business community , finding that the practice infringed religious freedom . In June 2008 , the Hamburg Administrative Court fined the city of Hamburg 5 @,@ 000 Euros ( $ 7 @,@ 000 ) for not complying with court instructions banning the use of " sect filters . " Internet links to sample filters to be used by businesses had continued to remain available . Eileen Barker , a professor of sociology at the London School of Economics , has noted that " Germany has gone further than any other Western European country in restricting the civil rights of Scientologists . " The Hamburg task force was closed down in August 2010 as a result of budget cuts ; Caberta moved to a position within the Hamburg interior authority , where she continues her work on Scientology .   Scientologists have been banned from joining major political parties in Germany such as the Christian Democratic Union , the Christian Social Union of Bavaria , the Social Democratic Party of Germany and the Free Democratic Party . Existing Scientologist members of these parties have been " purged " , according to Time Magazine . Scientologists have been prevented from running employment and au pair agencies in Germany ; Scientologists who were running such agencies had their permits revoked . In 1995 , a sports scientist and former member of the German national fencing team was dismissed from his job at the German Olympic fencing centre after he stated in an interview that he had enjoyed reading books by L. Ron Hubbard and had participated in a course run by a Scientologist management and communication consultancy firm . Thomas Gottschalk , a German TV presenter , was falsely accused in 1993 of having taken part in Scientology courses ; Gottschalk responded by announcing that he had not , and that he would henceforth cease all contact with a friend who had links to Scientology . In 2007 , Günther Oettinger , the Minister @-@ President of the German state of Baden @-@ Württemberg , expressed concern that Scientologist John Travolta was to appear on Gottschalk 's programme , and asked the ZDF TV station to consider revoking the invitation ; the ZDF said that uninviting Travolta would cause greater damage , and that Scientology was not going to be discussed in the programme .   In 2010 , the Bavarian Administrative Court ruled that a woman working in a children 's daycare centre , whose employment had been terminated when her ex @-@ husband identified her as a Scientologist , should be reinstated . The woman had demonstrated to the court 's satisfaction that her Scientological beliefs were irrelevant to her work . According to the agreement that concluded the case , she promised not to use Scientology methods in her work , and to inform the children 's parents of her membership in Scientology .   = = Initiative to ban Scientology = =   In March 2007 , it was reported that German authorities were increasing their efforts to monitor Scientology in response to the opening of a new Scientology headquarters in Berlin . On December 7 , 2007 , German federal and state interior ministers expressed the opinion that the Scientology organization was continuing to pursue anti @-@ constitutional goals , restricting " essential basic and human rights like the dignity of man or the right to equal treatment " , and asked Germany 's domestic intelligence agencies to collect and evaluate the information required for a possible judicial inquiry aimed at banning the organization .   The move was criticized by German politicians from all sides of the political spectrum , with legal experts and intelligence agencies expressing concern that an attempt to ban the organization would likely fail in the courts . Sabine Weber , president of the Church of Scientology in Berlin , called the accusations " unrealistic " and " absurd " and said that the German interior ministers ' evaluation was based on " a few sentences out of 500 @,@ 000 pages of Scientological literature " . She added , " I can also find hundreds of quotes in the Bible that are totalitarian but that doesn 't mean I will demand the ban of Christianity . "   In November 2008 , the government abandoned its attempts to ban Scientology , after finding insufficient evidence of illegal or unconstitutional activity . The report by the BfV cited knowledge gaps and noted several points that would make the success of any legal undertaking to ban Scientology doubtful . First , the BfV report stated there was no evidence that Scientology could be viewed as a foreign organization ; there were German churches and missions , a German board , German bylaws , and no evidence that the organization was " totally remote @-@ controlled " from the United States . A foreign organization would have been much easier to ban than a German
Ġcomplaint Ġabout Ġdiscrimination Ġfrom ĠScientology Ġlawyers Ġ, Ġsome ĠAmerican Ġcompanies Ġsuch Ġas ĠGeneral ĠElectric Ġ, ĠIBM Ġand ĠFord ĠMotor ĠCompany Ġinstructed Ġtheir ĠGerman Ġsubsidiaries Ġto Ġcease Ġthe Ġuse Ġof Ġprotective Ġdeclarations Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠThe Ġcity Ġ@ - @ Ġstate Ġof ĠHamburg Ġset Ġup Ġa Ġfull Ġ@ - @ Ġtime Ġoffice Ġdedicated Ġto Ġopposing ĠScientology Ġ, Ġthe ĠScientology ĠTask ĠForce Ġfor Ġthe ĠHamburg ĠInterior ĠAuthority Ġ, Ġunder Ġthe Ġleadership Ġof ĠUrs ula ĠCab ert a Ġ. ĠIn Ġ2005 Ġ, Ġin Ġa Ġcase Ġbrought Ġby Ġa ĠScient ologist Ġ, Ġthe ĠFederal ĠAdministrative ĠCourt Ġof ĠGermany Ġordered Ġthe Ġcity Ġof ĠHamburg Ġto Ġcease Ġrecommending Ġthe Ġuse Ġof Ġprotective Ġdeclarations Ġto Ġits Ġbusiness Ġcommunity Ġ, Ġfinding Ġthat Ġthe Ġpractice Ġinfring ed Ġreligious Ġfreedom Ġ. ĠIn ĠJune Ġ2008 Ġ, Ġthe ĠHamburg ĠAdministrative ĠCourt Ġfined Ġthe Ġcity Ġof ĠHamburg Ġ5 Ġ@ , @ Ġ000 ĠEuros Ġ( Ġ$ Ġ7 Ġ@ , @ Ġ000 Ġ) Ġfor Ġnot Ġcomplying Ġwith Ġcourt Ġinstructions Ġbanning Ġthe Ġuse Ġof Ġ" Ġsect Ġfilters Ġ. Ġ" ĠInternet Ġlinks Ġto Ġsample Ġfilters Ġto Ġbe Ġused Ġby Ġbusinesses Ġhad Ġcontinued Ġto Ġremain Ġavailable Ġ. ĠE ileen ĠBarker Ġ, Ġa Ġprofessor Ġof Ġsociology Ġat Ġthe ĠLondon ĠSchool Ġof ĠEconomics Ġ, Ġhas Ġnoted Ġthat Ġ" ĠGermany Ġhas Ġgone Ġfurther Ġthan Ġany Ġother ĠWestern ĠEuropean Ġcountry Ġin Ġrestricting Ġthe Ġcivil Ġrights Ġof ĠScient ologists Ġ. Ġ" ĠThe ĠHamburg Ġtask Ġforce Ġwas Ġclosed Ġdown Ġin ĠAugust Ġ2010 Ġas Ġa Ġresult Ġof Ġbudget Ġcuts Ġ; ĠCab ert a Ġmoved Ġto Ġa Ġposition Ġwithin Ġthe ĠHamburg Ġinterior Ġauthority Ġ, Ġwhere Ġshe Ġcontinues Ġher Ġwork Ġon ĠScientology Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠScient ologists Ġhave Ġbeen Ġbanned Ġfrom Ġjoining Ġmajor Ġpolitical Ġparties Ġin ĠGermany Ġsuch Ġas Ġthe ĠChristian ĠDemocratic ĠUnion Ġ, Ġthe ĠChristian ĠSocial ĠUnion Ġof ĠBav aria Ġ, Ġthe ĠSocial ĠDemocratic ĠParty Ġof ĠGermany Ġand Ġthe ĠFree ĠDemocratic ĠParty Ġ. ĠEx isting ĠScient ologist Ġmembers Ġof Ġthese Ġparties Ġhave Ġbeen Ġ" Ġpur ged Ġ" Ġ, Ġaccording Ġto ĠTime ĠMagazine Ġ. ĠScient ologists Ġhave Ġbeen Ġprevented Ġfrom Ġrunning Ġemployment Ġand Ġau Ġpair Ġagencies Ġin ĠGermany Ġ; ĠScient ologists Ġwho Ġwere Ġrunning Ġsuch Ġagencies Ġhad Ġtheir Ġpermits Ġrevoked Ġ. ĠIn Ġ1995 Ġ, Ġa Ġsports Ġscientist Ġand Ġformer Ġmember Ġof Ġthe ĠGerman Ġnational Ġfencing Ġteam Ġwas Ġdismissed Ġfrom Ġhis Ġjob Ġat Ġthe ĠGerman ĠOlympic Ġfencing Ġcentre Ġafter Ġhe Ġstated Ġin Ġan Ġinterview Ġthat Ġhe Ġhad Ġenjoyed Ġreading Ġbooks Ġby ĠL . ĠRon ĠHubbard Ġand Ġhad Ġparticipated Ġin Ġa Ġcourse Ġrun Ġby Ġa ĠScient ologist Ġmanagement Ġand Ġcommunication Ġconsultancy Ġfirm Ġ. ĠThomas ĠGot ts ch alk Ġ, Ġa ĠGerman ĠTV Ġpresenter Ġ, Ġwas Ġfalsely Ġaccused Ġin Ġ1993 Ġof Ġhaving Ġtaken Ġpart Ġin ĠScientology Ġcourses Ġ; ĠGot ts ch alk Ġresponded Ġby Ġannouncing Ġthat Ġhe Ġhad Ġnot Ġ, Ġand Ġthat Ġhe Ġwould Ġhence forth Ġcease Ġall Ġcontact Ġwith Ġa Ġfriend Ġwho Ġhad Ġlinks Ġto ĠScientology Ġ. ĠIn Ġ2007 Ġ, ĠG Ã¼ nt her ĠO etting er Ġ, Ġthe ĠMinister Ġ@ - @ ĠPresident Ġof Ġthe ĠGerman Ġstate Ġof ĠBad en Ġ@ - @ ĠW Ã¼r tt ember g Ġ, Ġexpressed Ġconcern Ġthat ĠScient ologist ĠJohn ĠT rav olt a Ġwas Ġto Ġappear Ġon ĠGot ts ch alk Ġ' s Ġprogramme Ġ, Ġand Ġasked Ġthe ĠZ DF ĠTV Ġstation Ġto Ġconsider Ġrev oking Ġthe Ġinvitation Ġ; Ġthe ĠZ DF Ġsaid Ġthat Ġun inv iting ĠT rav olt a Ġwould Ġcause Ġgreater Ġdamage Ġ, Ġand Ġthat ĠScientology Ġwas Ġnot Ġgoing Ġto Ġbe Ġdiscussed Ġin Ġthe Ġprogramme Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠIn Ġ2010 Ġ, Ġthe ĠBav arian ĠAdministrative ĠCourt Ġruled Ġthat Ġa Ġwoman Ġworking Ġin Ġa Ġchildren Ġ' s Ġday care Ġcentre Ġ, Ġwhose Ġemployment Ġhad Ġbeen Ġterminated Ġwhen Ġher Ġex Ġ@ - @ Ġhusband Ġidentified Ġher Ġas Ġa ĠScient ologist Ġ, Ġshould Ġbe Ġreinstated Ġ. ĠThe Ġwoman Ġhad Ġdemonstrated Ġto Ġthe Ġcourt Ġ' s Ġsatisfaction Ġthat Ġher ĠScient ological Ġbeliefs Ġwere Ġirrelevant Ġto Ġher Ġwork Ġ. ĠAccording Ġto Ġthe Ġagreement Ġthat Ġconcluded Ġthe Ġcase Ġ, Ġshe Ġpromised Ġnot Ġto Ġuse ĠScientology Ġmethods Ġin Ġher Ġwork Ġ, Ġand Ġto Ġinform Ġthe Ġchildren Ġ' s Ġparents Ġof Ġher Ġmembership Ġin ĠScientology Ġ. Ġ Ġ Ġ= Ġ= ĠInitiative Ġto Ġban ĠScientology Ġ= Ġ= Ġ Ġ ĠIn ĠMarch Ġ2007 Ġ, Ġit Ġwas Ġreported Ġthat ĠGerman Ġauthorities Ġwere Ġincreasing Ġtheir Ġefforts Ġto Ġmonitor ĠScientology Ġin Ġresponse Ġto Ġthe Ġopening Ġof Ġa Ġnew ĠScientology Ġheadquarters Ġin ĠBerlin Ġ. ĠOn ĠDecember Ġ7 Ġ, Ġ2007 Ġ, ĠGerman Ġfederal Ġand Ġstate Ġinterior Ġministers Ġexpressed Ġthe Ġopinion Ġthat Ġthe ĠScientology Ġorganization Ġwas Ġcontinuing Ġto Ġpursue Ġanti Ġ@ - @ Ġconstitutional Ġgoals Ġ, Ġrestricting Ġ" Ġessential Ġbasic Ġand Ġhuman Ġrights Ġlike Ġthe Ġdignity Ġof Ġman Ġor Ġthe Ġright Ġto Ġequal Ġtreatment Ġ" Ġ, Ġand Ġasked ĠGermany Ġ' s Ġdomestic Ġintelligence Ġagencies Ġto Ġcollect Ġand Ġevaluate Ġthe Ġinformation Ġrequired Ġfor Ġa Ġpossible Ġjudicial Ġinquiry Ġaimed Ġat Ġbanning Ġthe Ġorganization Ġ. Ġ Ġ ĠThe Ġmove Ġwas Ġcriticized Ġby ĠGerman Ġpoliticians Ġfrom Ġall Ġsides Ġof Ġthe Ġpolitical Ġspectrum Ġ, Ġwith Ġlegal Ġexperts Ġand Ġintelligence Ġagencies Ġexpressing Ġconcern Ġthat Ġan Ġattempt Ġto Ġban Ġthe Ġorganization Ġwould Ġlikely Ġfail Ġin Ġthe Ġcourts Ġ. ĠSab ine ĠWeber Ġ, Ġpresident Ġof Ġthe ĠChurch Ġof ĠScientology Ġin ĠBerlin Ġ, Ġcalled Ġthe Ġaccusations Ġ" Ġunrealistic Ġ" Ġand Ġ" Ġabsurd Ġ" Ġand Ġsaid Ġthat Ġthe ĠGerman Ġinterior Ġministers Ġ' Ġevaluation Ġwas Ġbased Ġon Ġ" Ġa Ġfew Ġsentences Ġout Ġof Ġ500 Ġ@ , @ Ġ000 Ġpages Ġof ĠScient ological Ġliterature Ġ" Ġ. ĠShe Ġadded Ġ, Ġ" ĠI Ġcan Ġalso Ġfind Ġhundreds Ġof Ġquotes Ġin Ġthe ĠBible Ġthat Ġare Ġtotalitarian Ġbut Ġthat Ġdoesn Ġ' t Ġmean ĠI Ġwill Ġdemand Ġthe Ġban Ġof ĠChristianity Ġ. Ġ" Ġ Ġ ĠIn ĠNovember Ġ2008 Ġ, Ġthe Ġgovernment Ġabandoned Ġits Ġattempts Ġto Ġban ĠScientology Ġ, Ġafter Ġfinding Ġinsufficient Ġevidence Ġof Ġillegal Ġor Ġunconstitutional Ġactivity Ġ. ĠThe Ġreport Ġby Ġthe ĠB f V Ġcited Ġknowledge Ġgaps Ġand Ġnoted Ġseveral Ġpoints Ġthat Ġwould Ġmake Ġthe Ġsuccess Ġof Ġany Ġlegal Ġundertaking Ġto Ġban ĠScientology Ġdoubtful Ġ. ĠFirst Ġ, Ġthe ĠB f V Ġreport Ġstated Ġthere Ġwas Ġno Ġevidence Ġthat ĠScientology Ġcould Ġbe Ġviewed Ġas Ġa Ġforeign Ġorganization Ġ; Ġthere Ġwere ĠGerman Ġchurches Ġand Ġmissions Ġ, Ġa ĠGerman Ġboard Ġ, ĠGerman Ġby laws Ġ, Ġand Ġno Ġevidence Ġthat Ġthe Ġorganization Ġwas Ġ" Ġtotally Ġremote Ġ@ - @ Ġcontrolled Ġ" Ġfrom Ġthe ĠUnited ĠStates Ġ. ĠA Ġforeign Ġorganization Ġwould Ġhave Ġbeen Ġmuch Ġeasier Ġto Ġban Ġthan Ġa ĠGerman