April 20, 2001
To: Governor of Nizhny Novgorod Province
Ivan Petrovich Sklyarov
Cc: Dept. of Internal Affairs of
Nizhny Novgorod Province
Vyacheslav Ivanovich Kanygin
Head Office of Federal Security Service of
Nizhny Novgorod Province
Vladimir Ivanovich Bulavin
Mayor of the city of Nizhny Novgorod
Yury Isakovich Lebedev
Metropolitan of Nizhny Novgorod and Arzamas Nicholas
Mass Media of Nizhny Novgorod Province and
the city of Nizhny Novgorod
From: Director of PR Office
Hubbard Humanitarian Center
Yulia Maratovna Azbenova
Phone: in Moscow: (095) 961-3416
in Nizhny Novgorod: (8312) 41-2341
Dear Ivan Petrovich:
In connection with the forthcoming international conference ” Totalitarian Cults – the Menace of the Twenty First Century” which will be held in Nizhny Novgorod April 23-25, I would like to forewarn you as governor of the province about a problem in connection with one of the participants of this conference.
I am talking about Gerald Armstrong, a man who will take part in this conference and will present a paper on April 24, 2001.
In May 1998 the Supreme Court of the State of California issued an order to “arrest him and to bring him to the court” and that this arrest “can be conducted any time day or night” (cited from the court decision). I should add that this Armstrong was to be brought before the court and held accountable for anti-religious propaganda.
The order has not been executed until now for the simple reason that Armstrong is not at the moment residing in the US and thus is outside the reach of American justice.
I have no doubt that neither the Diocese of Nizhny Novgorod nor the authorities of Nizhny Novgorod Province and the city of Nizhny Novgorod have access to this data; otherwise this man would not have been put on the list of participants in the Conference.
I include here a copy of the document sent to me from the USA and I ask you to find out whose initiative it was to invite this man to Nizhny Novgorod, deliberately not informing the government that he is a criminal element. It is necessary to carefully screen all the list of the participants as well.
I also would like to inform you that this document, with an explanatory letter similar to this one, has already been submitted to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation, and the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation. Moreover, the information about the arrival of Armstrong in Russia has been handed to the U.S. Embassy in Russia so that the necessary measures may be taken for his detention.
It is very distressing to me that the city and regional authorities, as well as the Orthodox diocese, are unaware that the reputation of this person, and perhaps some other participants of the Conference, are putting their good name at risk. Nizhny Novgorod Province, which is at present well known for its social stability, in receiving a foreign criminal, could be reduced to a proving ground for religious fighting and appear in an unfavorable light to other countries.
I am ready to render you what help I can in resolving this issue,
Respectfully,
************************************************************************
April 20, 2001
For additional information call
Dianetics Center of Nizhny Novgorod
Director, Department of Public Relations
Yelena Arkadievna Deineko
Phone: (8312) 41-2341
RESPECT THE RELIGIOUS BELIEFS OF OTHERS
Will this principle be upheld in the forthcoming Nizhny Novgorod Conference
“Totalitarian Cults – the Menace of the Twenty-First Century”?
World-renowned writer and philosopher L. Ron Hubbard wrote: “On the day when we can fully trust each other, there will be peace on Earth.” Unfortunately, this day apparently will not come tomorrow. People’s trust is often betrayed and, unfortunately, those deceived are often persons of high spiritual standing, who seek Goodness and Truth.
Did the Governor of Nizhny Novgorod Province and the head of the Nizhny Novgorod Orthodox Diocese not know that they were being deceived? Nevertheless, this is what is happening.
A man who is a fugitive from justice will be a speaker at the International Conference “Totalitarian Cults – the Menace of the Twenty-First Century” which will be held in Nizhny Novgorod April 23-25.
This man is Gerald Armstrong. In May 1998 the Supreme Court of the State of California issued an order to “arrest him and to bring him to the court” and that this arrest “can be conducted any time day or night” (cited from the court decision) .
Of course, neither the Diocese of Nizhny Novgorod nor the authorities of Nizhny Novgorod Province or the city of Nizhny Novgorod had suspected this, since it has become known only recently, thanks to the actions of law-abiding Russians.
But who invited such a “distinguished guest” to Nizhny Novgorod? This remains unknown. There is, however, another fact relating to the above-mentioned conference. An active participant in the Conference work is American citizen, ” cultologist” Alexander Dvorkin, about whose book Sectovedenye (Cultology) the Newspaper NG-Religii wrote that it is written in the spirit of religious intolerance and that it can tear away Russians who yearn for spirituality from the Orthodox Church.
Hiding behind Orthodoxy, the ancient and traditional Russian religion, and incessantly repeating that he works for the Moscow Patriarchate, he conducts a policy of religious intolerance, attacking religious minorities and bringing schism into society. It is particularly noteworthy that, for some reason, he pays special attention to organizations and people who are involved in solving the problems of illegal drugs. In his pseudoscientific “cultology” writings, Dvorkin has tried to attack the Unification Church, which, as does Scientology, actively works against drugs in Russia. Something additionally should be said about his recent attempt to discredit the highly respected Dean of the Urals State University, who also fights against drug addiction in his University. We should add that this action by Dvorkin was scandalously unsuccessful; the Ekaterinburg public did not buy his black propaganda, and Dvorkin had to hide. But aren’t there too many coincidences?
Both city and provincial authorities, by being unaware of the reputation of these visitors, are putting their good names at risk. Nizhny Novgorod Province, which is at present well known for its social stability, in receiving a foreign criminal, could be reduced to a proving ground for religious fighting, appear in an unfavorable light to other countries, and become a forum for propagation of religious hatred.
But people of good will by their deeds and thoughts validate the words of Ron Hubbard: “Tolerance is a good cornerstone on which to build human relationships. When one views the slaughter and suffering caused by religious intolerance throughout all the history of man and into modern times, one can see that intolerance is a very non-survival activity.
Religious tolerance does not mean one cannot express his own beliefs. It does mean that seeking to undermine or attack the religious faith and beliefs of another has always been a short road to trouble.”
o0o