Scientology in Belgium
Encyclopedia
Scientology has operated in Belgium since 1972, but the organization has encountered difficulties there in recent years.
only officially recognizes six religions: Roman Catholicism, Protestantism
, Anglicanism
, the Orthodox Church, Judaism
and Islam
, and has denied Scientology's request to be included.
Scientology opened an international office in 2003 near the European Union headquarters to lobby for recognition as an official religious group.
In response to the proposed trial, the U.S. State Department said that if Belgian authorities "have evidence that individuals violated Belgian law, they should take appropriate legal steps consistent with Belgium’s international obligations to protect freedom of thought, conscience and religion"; however, the State Department would "oppose any effort to stigmatize an entire group based solely upon religious beliefs and would be concerned over infringement of any individual’s rights because of religious affiliation."
reported an official statement released by the Church of Scientology on September 4, 2007:
The Church added that the prosecutor's recommendations suggested Scientology was guilty even before a court could hear the charges, making it "difficult for the Church of Scientology to recover and properly defend (itself) before the court."
Status of Scientology in Belgium
BelgiumBelgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
only officially recognizes six religions: Roman Catholicism, Protestantism
Protestantism
Protestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...
, Anglicanism
Anglicanism
Anglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures. The word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to at least 1246 that means the English...
, the Orthodox Church, Judaism
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
and Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
, and has denied Scientology's request to be included.
Scientology opened an international office in 2003 near the European Union headquarters to lobby for recognition as an official religious group.
2007 trial proposal
The Belgian government denied Scientology the status of religion in 1997, and began investigating its practices and finances after ex-Scientologists said they had been subjected to intimidation and extortion. Concluding the ten-year investigation, on September 4, 2007, a Belgian prosecutor recommended that 12 persons associated with Scientology and two legal entities – the Belgian Church of Scientology and Scientology's Office of Human Rights – should be prosecuted on counts of extortion, fraud, organized crime, obstruction of medical practice, illegal medical practice, invasion of privacy, conspiracy and commercial infractions like abusive contractual clauses. An administrative court would decide if the case would go ahead and charges would be pressed. The court's decision was expected to be announced within a few months.U.S. State Department response
Belgium and other European countries have been criticized by the U.S. State Department for ruling that Scientology was a cult or sect and enacting restrictive laws against it.In response to the proposed trial, the U.S. State Department said that if Belgian authorities "have evidence that individuals violated Belgian law, they should take appropriate legal steps consistent with Belgium’s international obligations to protect freedom of thought, conscience and religion"; however, the State Department would "oppose any effort to stigmatize an entire group based solely upon religious beliefs and would be concerned over infringement of any individual’s rights because of religious affiliation."
Church of Scientology response
The Associated PressAssociated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
reported an official statement released by the Church of Scientology on September 4, 2007:
"For the last 10 years, the prosecutor has been using the media, trying to damage the reputation of the Church of Scientology and not being able to put a case in court," Scientology said. "As a consequence, this created a climate of intolerance and discrimination" in Belgium.
The Church added that the prosecutor's recommendations suggested Scientology was guilty even before a court could hear the charges, making it "difficult for the Church of Scientology to recover and properly defend (itself) before the court."
See also
- Scientology as a state-recognized religionScientology as a state-recognized religionScientology status by country describes the status of Scientology and its recognition as a religion or otherwise in different countries. The Church of Scientology pursues an extensive public relations campaign for state recognition of Scientology as a religion and cites numerous scholarly sources...
- Timeline of ScientologyTimeline of ScientologyThis is a timeline of Scientology, particularly its foundation and development by author L. Ron Hubbard.-1938:* L. Ron Hubbard authors a manuscript called "Excalibur" which contains ideas that were later incorporated into Scientology.-1949:...
- Scientology controversies