USCIRF 2023 Annual Report shows serious regression in several countries and a few new entries. In China and Russia, minorities continue to be persecuted.
Featured Global
Argentina: How the Jesus Christians Defeated Pablo Salum and PROTEX
In 2022, the leading Argentinian anti-cultist and the controversial anti-trafficking prosecutorial office were told by a federal judge that their accusations against a “cult” were false.
UK Supreme Court: Jehovah’s Witnesses Not Responsible for Rape Committed by a (then) Elder in a Non-Institutional Setting
Religious organizations should not pay damages for crimes perpetrated by their leaders or members in private homes outside of church-organized religious activity, the court said.
Did French Diplomacy Support an Anti-Cult Extremist Who Calls Buddhists and LDS “Cultists”?
Argentinian Pablo Salum includes among “cultists” even the Catholic Discalced Carmelite nuns. He claims that in 2013 he was offered collaboration by the French Embassy.
Arizona Supreme Court Protects Secret of Confession in a LDS Case
Although a man had boasted of his sexual abuse of his daughter on social media, what he told to his Mormon church leaders in a confessional context remains protected.
PMC Ryodan: A Strange Story of Comics, Anti-Cultists, and the Kremlin
Anti-cultists persuaded Russian authorities that fans of a Japanese comic are “cultists” controlled by Ukraine—where they are also arrested, as “Russian agents.”
The Great Cult Scare in Argentina and the Buenos Aires Yoga School. 5. The Ghost of Prostitution
In 2022, a second raid hit the BAYS, and the case is still pending. The main accusation is human trafficking through the operation of a prostitution ring.
The Great Cult Scare in Argentina and the Buenos Aires Yoga School. 4. “The Most Dangerous Cult of Them All”
From 1993 to 2000, a long criminal case tried to prove that BAYS was guilty of sexual abuses. All defendants were declared innocent.
The Great Cult Scare in Argentina and the Buenos Aires Yoga School. 3. An Eclectic Teaching
Juan Percowicz claims to teach philosophy rather than spirituality or religion, with Gurdjieff as presented by Ouspensky and Dale Carnegie as important but not exclusive references.
The Great Cult Scare in Argentina and the Buenos Aires Yoga School. 2. An Accountant-Philosopher and His Friends
Juan Percowicz, an accountant with a passion for philosophy, established in 1983 a school that attracted intellectuals, doctors, and artists.