Hotel stops Scientology Exhibition
Government press office had protested
Scientology intends to sue

Berlin, Germany
April 18, 2000
Berliner Kurier

Steglitz - Once again the Scientology Organization (SO) in Berlin is embroiled in controversy: the corporation which presents itself as a religion had originally intended to open an exhibition in a hotel today, but their name was crossed off the list due to public pressure.

"We rented Scientology spaces for a meeting assuming a closed conference. Yet the organization distributed about 500,000 leaflets in 13 districts giving directions to the exhibition in our hotel. We perceived that our good reputation was in danger and terminated agreement," said Klaus-Volker Stolle, manager of the hotel in question in Steglitz. Also, the Press and Information Office of the federal administration had indicated in a letter to the hotel that Parliament's travel agency would cancel bookings for 2000 and 2001 if the business relations of the hotel with Scientology were not clarified. Because of that, the controversial psycho-group is now demanding 200,000 marks from the Office - for damages. Besides that, representatives of various political parties had got wind of the plans and protested. "We need neither the Scientologists nor their activities in our city," said Cerstin Richter-Kotowski, vice chief of the CDU faction in the House of Representatives. The controversial, commercially oriented group has already been under surveillance by Constitutional Security; the Berlin sect report says, "The SO's image of society stands in unmistakable tension to our basic, liberal, democratic system." Now Scientology will be opening its show today at 1 p.m. in private spaces at 30 Dueppel Street in Steglitz.

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