Swiss report on "cults" and "indoctrinating" groups, from the National Council, 1999 - unofficial (amateur) part translation from Roger Gonnet
PART 1
Do not remove this Translation Note: This is an unofficial translation of a publicly available Swiss government document. That means that the Swiss government makes no guarantee about the accuracy of this English translation. This translation is for non-commercial use only. The original Swiss document in German is available at http://www.parlament.ch/Poly/Framesets/E/Frame-E.HTMas a pdf file. If French is your language of choice, Roger Gonnet has a zipped French version at http://www.antisectes.net/rapport-suisse1.zip. In this translation, which originated at http://cisar.org/, "Vereinnahmende Bewegung" is translated as "Assimilative Movement."
National rat
Conseil national
Consiglio nazionale
Cussegl naziunal
If the confederation wants to care for people of this country and be supported by them, it has to be aware that for many, the religious enrollement is placed on top, and whatever could be the price to pay. This dimension should be kept in mind, because it's a part of the present manship.Besides, the State must show that, while taking the religious movements seriously, it should keep a critical attitude: the State should also be able to say : No.
(Quote from the hearings.
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comments from the site's author (having formatted and translated parts of the report together with Joe Cisar, main translator)
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Commission de gestion
CH-3003 Berne"Cults" or endoctrinating movements in Switzerland: towards a federal politics about "cults"
Rapport de la Commission de gestion du Conseil national
du 1er juillet 1999
Langue originale du rapport : allemand
Embargo:
2 juillet 1999, 09.30 heures
Table des matières
- (original french official text page number kept and shown )
(Original) quotes from hearings or from texts are indicated as such and in italics
- -bottom notes are linked to the text , preceded by a line, and followed by the next page nummer
- passages in french being evident are left untranslated between || in blue coulour - - - - ||
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Synopsis
The Business Review Commission (GPK) of the National Assembly pursued the issue of whether "sects" or assimilative movements in Switzerland pose a danger for individuals, state or society. Further, it inquired into whether state and/or private centers fill the requirements of social groups and take care of people who have become involuntarily dependent. Finally, it dealt with the central issue of whether a need to act exists on the part of the state and - if yes - which measures to take and to verify.
The Commission basically affirmed the need for action by the state. At the same time it found that existing laws are, by and large, adequate. The necessity for action exists in the area of enforcement; in isolated instances there are loopholes in the legislation.
Therefore the Commission recommends that the Federal Assembly formulate a "sect" policy, establish a Swiss Information and Counseling Center, launch an information campaign, promote interdisciplinary research, and, in this regard, coordinate the cooperation of researchers and informational and counseling committees.
It requires the Federal Assembly to coordinate the work of various administrative centers, both inter-cantonal (based on cantonal endeavors) and between the federal government and the individual cantons, and to establish a cooperation across borders. In addition, the Federal Assembly should coordinate relevant cantonal legislation in the area of assimilative movements, health legislation in particular. As concerns enforcement, the Commission recommends that the Federal Assembly implement action to ensure, in particular, the safety of children. It has also been determined that there are loopholes in areas of consumer protection and a corresponding need for action. So-called "sects," "new religious movements" and psycho-groups are a national and social reality which are manifested worldwide and which cover all ages, classes, income and education levels. They are appearing not only in the highly industrialized nations but also in the countries of the so-called "Third World." They can - at times intentionally - put on different faces and show themselves in a multitude of features and facets which make recognition of their form more difficult: they can be Christian fundamentalist congregations, new religions from Japan, Afro-Brazilian cults from Latin America, independent African churches, spiritist communities, varied cultic phenomena, UFO believers, satanic groups, etc, but also include loose, unstructured groups who flock around the same "guru," or around hidden promises of salvation on the immensely booming esoterica market. When faced with criticism in primarily liberally constructed societies and democratically organized states, they mostly invoke the constitutionally guaranteed freedoms of belief and of religion. The phenomena discussed by the Business Review Commission mainly arose on the fringes of religious (and pseudo-religious) categories or outside the major religious traditions. When the national or international media refer to them, it is practically without exception negative - be it because of spectacular events such as murders or collective suicides or be it on account of not less disturbing individual fates. Their backgrounds include psychic manipulation and dependency upon the group or totalitarian infrastructure within the movements which manifests itself
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in real forms ranging from financial, employment, social or mental damages to individual spiritual discouragement and, not infrequently, alienation from family. Reports of experiences of those affected (and their close circle of acquaintances), psychological evaluations and investigative reports of foreign government and parliaments have served as proof of such practices for a long time now. While the victims are here complaining, there reign the spiritual fathers of such movements, thanks to a mixture of part Far Eastern philosophies and part market philosophies, over their own business empires.
This investigation, then, does not deal expressly with individual groups or religious content, but with methods which touch upon rights of freedom which are socially relevant and protected by the state. A separation between content and method is not always possible, however, such as with groups which have express or latent racist, anti-Semitic or fascistoid tendencies which are punishable under the anti-racism criminal code.
In the course of its work, the Commission experienced a change of consciousness. It was confronted with a central finding of fact which put its investigation in an historic as well as a current context: Switzerland is a multi-cultural and a multi-religious society with the stamp of religious pluralism. Religious conviction and denominations which do not correspond with the traditional, Christian world picture conveyed by state churches and schools have always been a component of our culture and have contributed somewhat extensively to the formation of our nation for centuries.
Included in that, as well, are not only the large world religions like Christianity of the Catholic and Protestant types, the Jewish religion, Islam and both traditional and more recent non-denominational churches but also denominations which have been denounced (and sometimes alienated) as "mob piety."
For their adherents their faith is their religious homeland and Switzerland is their political and emotional homeland. They pay taxes, serve in the military, graduate from schools and form, as employees and employers, a part of our society and of our federal and cantonal governments. They want to be acknowledged in their current religious identity and to be taken seriously. As far as that is concerned, the state did not come here today factually prepared to discuss issues of religion.
In the past few years politicians in foreign countries (Germany, et al.) have entered the discussion at the highest levels, taken clear positions and have sometimes made unpopular decisions. France, Sweden and the European Parliament have published "sect" reports, and in Austria and Germany, information campaigns have been launched. As far as spin-offs of so-called "sects, called "dérives sectaires" in French, including new religious movements and psycho-groups as well as their practices, the Swiss nation has not yet made its position known. The Federal Assembly has referred the issue to the Constitution (freedoms of belief and religion), to the federalist element (issues of faith are matters for the cantons) and to private initiatives. Political and judicial authorities have also been suitably reserved on the matter.
In contrast to that, a portion of the press, mostly in the German-speaking part of Switzerland, has for years been critically, and sometimes emotionally and aggressively, involved with the phenomena. The French-speaking Swiss press has been aware of the explosiveness of the situation at least since the Solar Temple drama of October 1994 and has since then given it more coverage. Also since then Cantonal politics have gotten involved to some degree: at the initiative of Geneva Canton, an inter-cantonal work group has begun
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I Assignment, organisation and procedure
1 Initial situation
The question of responsibility for "sect" issues at the federal level, and especially the Solar Temple drama, led the National Assembly's Business Review Commission to decide to get involved with the problems of "sects," assimilative movements and new religious movements. What triggered this in particular was the fact that more and more cases were becoming known and discussed in public in which individuals were being obstructed from exercising basic democratic rights, such as the right to form an opinion or the right of voluntary expression.
Upon the observation of a GPK member that (in February 1997), in the central office for joint defense, there was no reference either to the Solar Temple drama or to the associated issue of the ethical principles of security politics, a representative of the EMD (today the VBS) commented that the understanding of the concept of "threat" included not only a military but also "social and religious aspects."
In their intention to review the question of the necessity of action by the state, the Commission has been strengthened through:
- the circumstance that various offices and service centers of the federal government, in the scope of their current area of responsibility, even if just on the fringe, continue to be confronted more and more with so-called "sects" and similar categories.
- the fact that neither a minimum of coordination nor an outline of a coherent objective nor even a sign of an actual "sect politic" can be detected. The State Security Advisory Commission (KSK), the advising agency of the EJPD chairman in questions of state security, came to the conclusion, in the aftermath of the Solar Temple tragedy, that "sects, in the view of State Security [do] not [represent] a subject which must be looked at more closely." A EJPD report to the KSK in July 1998 concerning "the degree to which Scientology could present a threat the the security of Switzerland" indicated that Scientology exercised "principles reminiscent of a totalitarian system," had "important financial components," exerted "psychological coercion upon its members in some cases," and performed "activities similar to that of an intelligence agency." The report came to the conclusion, however, that a preventive surveillance was to be avoided at the moment, but the situation should be further pursued (also in the international environment). Regarding "sects" in general, the report referred to the use of existing private, public or criminal codes, but regarded as useful the prospect of "neutral information on the developments in the religious area" being put at the disposal of "the public and the authorities," for example, in the form of an observation center at an academic institution. [1]
1. "Scientology in Switzerland," a report by the State Security Advisory Commission (KSK), published by the Swiss Federal Police, July 1998. An unofficial English translation is available at http://cisar.org/trn1030.htm.
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12. The Mission of the GPK and its LimitsIt is the mission of the GPK to review the fulfillment of federal missions. Hence the Commission traces the [authorizing] legitimization in the examination of an assignment not observed by the Federal Assembly and its administration. Even if no service agency is systematically involved with the theme of "sects," "new religious movements" or "psych-groups," there are very likely common points of contact in this connection, not least of which was the (dissolved at the end of 1998) Central Office for Joint Defense. The Secretary of the position conference was intensely concerned with the theme, even if he confirmed for the Commission that "personne ne s'occupe spécifiquement de la question des sectes au sein de cet office".
The Commission discussed issues which included the following:
- Are "sects," "new religious movements" and "psycho-groups" sources of danger for the individual, the state and society? Do such categories affect the social fringes or do they have a comprehensive significance upon all of society? Is there a need to take action at the Constitutional or the legislative level?
- Which state and/or private centers fulfill the needs of business groups, see to the people that have involuntarily become dependent and would want to protect themselves from the stigmatizing methods of such groups? Do legal foundations exist from which one can proceed? Does a uniform justification exist in this regard?
- How could reliable information be distributed about partially unpredictable developments on conflict phenomena in case that were regarded as necessary? Are there state and/or private agencies in every case which can translate a unique "sect" politic into a determined and persistent campaign of information and explanation?
Discussions regarding content material of individual "sects," "new religious movements" or psycho-groups were not a component of this inspection, insofar as that was generally possible. The GPK concentrated, first and foremost, on the goals, practices and methods along with their effects of conflict independently of individual groups. This report is meant to summarize the general potential for danger and conflict, contribute to the technical expertise of the discussion, make recommendations and so provide a contribution to clarification and to the formation of opinion by authorities and by the public.
3. Organization and Procedure
3.1 The Administrative Section of the GPK-N included the following members: National Assemblyman Fulvio Pelli (President), National Assemblymen and women Pierre Aguet, Angeline Fankhauser, Christiane Langenberger, Hubert Lauper, Walter Schmied, Luzi Stamm, Alexander Tschaeppaet (President of the Section until 31 Dec 97) and Milli Wittenwiler. The Section was supported by the Secretary of the Business Review Commission and her staff. In dealing with special questions the section called upon attorney Dr. Urs Eschmann as an expert.
- 1 La Scientologie en Suisse. Rapport à l’intention de la Commission consultative en matière de protection de l’Etat, juillet 1998, Conclusions
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needed to create private and/or public organisms having to elaborate a "politics regarding cults", notably using a continued information's effort ? Thoughts about C/NRMs have been excluded from the present inspection. The CdG's aim was first to deal with purposes, practices and methods as well as to their conflictual effects, this being done independently from such and such group. The report wants to study dangers and potential conflicts, to contribute objectively to the ideas debate, to present recommandations, and therefore to contribute to the authorithies' and public's information so as to make them able to get their opinion.
Those various and possibly conflictual interest centers as well as the influence some C/NRMs wants to take over political and economical areas show the emotional charge being intimately linked to the subject.
That emotional charge dit not lack either in the CdG, paragraphs 5.1 et 5.211
[resume: the commission invited as well the federal I/C to data protection, central fiscality I/C and some groups: whose 4 answered on six called; reminding that the purpose was not to debate upon ideologies]
33 The Section commissioned the Parliamentary Administrative Control Center (PVK) to answer the following questions:
- Who comes to terms with "sect" movements or developments in Switzerland and in which form (federal offices, cantons, churches, private organizations)?
- Are there forms of support (e.g. subsidies, tax breaks) for "sects" on the federal or canton levels?
- Are there conceivable means or measures with which to deal with the "sect" phenomenon at the federal level? If yes, what are they?
4 Findings from the PVK 2
The PVK came to the following conclusions in their task report of 20 February 1998:
- No federal service center systematically deals with the "sect" phenomenon or with individual aspects of it; but the subject probably touches the fringes of the areas of responsibility of various administrative offices. Several cantons have reacted with proposals for their own legislation while others are not active at all. Outside of the federal administration, church, university and private organization are involved with diverse aspects of the phenomenon.
2. PVK's Task Report of 20 February 1998, attached to this report.
No evidence of tax privileges or direct support of "sects" surfaced (includes exemption from direct federal tax, payment of subsidies or contributions).
- The wide palette of opinions as to possible measures ranged from not getting involved in the advancement of university research or support of the information and counseling work of private organizations up to establishment of a specific service center unit in the federal administration and the definition of an individual "sect" politic of the federal government.
II Present problematics
1 Cult: a fuzzy concept
The definition of the historically oppressed term of "sect" is difficult and remains problematic. Any attempt to view it with a clearly outlined content free from evaluation must fail due to the numerous kaleidoscopic aspects from which it can be viewed. The following selections may make that clear:
Terms used besides "sects" are "youth religions" (from the 1960s), "psychogroups," "destructive cults," "Far Eastern guru movements," "occult organizations," "organizations which operate under the protection of religious freedom," or (on the political plane) "religious communities, so-called youth sects and psychogroups," "so-called sects and psychogroups," and even - in general - "new religious movements." The latter also contains the terms "audience cult," "client cult" and "cult movement," which is more of an expression of organizational form and which corresponds more to the "wish for religious lack of obligation and consumer dealing with the offerings of a religious supermarket." Another difficulty is the fact that there is no legal definition of the term "cult" in all of Europe.
"Cults" is a "theological term for smaller congregations which have splintered off from a mother religion, and also for world philosophical groups which make religious claims without having arisen by splintering off from a major religious congregation. "Cults" however, has always been a term used from outside of the group, since the group does not see itself as a cult." [3]
In general speech usage it is equivalent with using the terms "radical," "extremist," "profit-oriented," "totalitarian" or "destructive" which inherently conceals the danger of wholesale disparagement and indiscriminate stigmatization of communities of faith. Presumably groups who have been branded or feel as though they have been branded reject the term "sect/cult" and prefer the scientifically neutral term used by theologians and religious sociologists, "new religious movements," not least of all to lend themselves an air of religious authority. Even this term raises questions: is a group which describes itself as a "church which sees itself as a victim of "religious persecution" really a "new religious movement" even though it is lacking in religious substance in even the most favorable case? May a movement which presents itself as a religion despite opposing indices be described as a dangerous association which has disguised itself as a religion? Individual movements adapt their labels from nation to nation depending on the circumstances: a movement calls itself a "church" in one country, in another a "Center for Applied Philosophy," and declares itself, approved by the justice officials, to be a "persecuted religious minority." While honest groups have no conflict at all, questionable associations also exploit the term "new religious movements" for the purpose of claiming the protection of religious freedom. The term "sect" is neither neutral nor is it a "scientific category with precisely defined characteristics for certain forms of belief or life styles." [4]
3. According to Meyers Lexicon.
4. Flammer, Philipp: "'Sekte': Können wir auf dieses Wort verzichten?" Referat in der Paulus-Akademie Zürich vom 16./17. März 1996 zum Thema "Missbrauchte Sehnsucht. Oder: Was ist eine Sekte?", in: infoSekta, Tätigkeitsbericht 1996, p. 20f.
["Sects: Can we do without this word?"]
It has turned into a word used in political disputes which - exactly for this reason - makes it all the more necessary to scrutinize it as a social phenomenon and as a subject of research.
4 This notion became an area of political divergences needing - for this exact cause - a more precise approach as a social phenomenon.2 «Cults» : Reality and phonomenon of the market in a pluralistic society
The "sect" phenomenon must be taken in context in today's society - increasing splintering and individualization, a tapering professional specialization with simultaneous transformation of the professional world as well as a marked pluralism as concerns religious and philosophical issues. Certain basic human needs get less and less space: social networks sunder, the creative components are disappearing from the work place, the material side of existence is growing at the cost of the common sense, the rapid changes promote insecurity and raise the potential for frustration. On top of that, (western) society no longer orients itself to a common standard of values. "Sects," in these times of changing values, offer themselves as an overflow valve for the insecurities associated with change: they offer a feeling of community, compensate for social isolation, give an identity to individuals who feel like they are only numbers, and provide (often absolute) answers to issues of meaning, i.e. they satisfy the need for security, as was determined by a study done in 1982 about sects in Romandie in 1982. [5]
Parallel to the rapidly increasing operation of local, regional and national commercial units in the global dimension of commerce ("world economy") with the socio-cultural changes, a globalization on the plane of religious belief can be observed which "is characterized in that certain 'religious undertakings' are pursuing an international strategy." It is therefore obvious that the religious change is also taking place in its own religion market in which consumers can select denominations or whole systems of belief. The complexity and vast number of movements, from a sociological perspective, amounts to one of the characteristics of the modern and post-modern era. Along with this a unique "cultic milieu" has arisen: "In English, the word 'cult' primarily describes groups which have 'deviated' from reigning religious traditions. However, they can only come about in large numbers with the cooperation of a favorable milieu. This 'milieu' is the heterogenous selection of "deviating" systems of belief and their associated practices. This does not absolutely have to do with 'religions' in the narrow sense. In the "cultic milieu' you face alternative medicine, parapsychology, exotic spiritual movements, interests in aliens, esoteric-occultism, etc. Even though there is no explicit relationship among them, these very different groups, in actuality, have a tendency to mutually strengthen each other. They are enveloped in an atmosphere which promotes the search for new values, and anyone who has an interest in one area will sooner or later necessarily come into contact with the others, because their information sources are frequently the same 5
- 4 Flammer Philipp, « 'Sekte' : Können wir auf dieses Wort verzichten ? » Conférence à la Paulus-Akademie de Zurich les 16 et 17 mars
1996 sur le sujet : « Missbrauchte Sehnsucht. Oder : Was ist eine Sekte ? », in : InfoSekta, Tätigkeitsbericht 1996, pp. 20 et s.
5 Campiche Roland J., Les sectes religieuses : sociétés dans la société suisse romande, in: Repères, Revue romande, no 4, 1982, pp. 8 et s.14
The "sect" phenomenon must be taken in context in today's society - increasing splintering and individualization, a tapering professional specialization with simultaneous transformation of the professional world as well as a marked pluralism as concerns religious and philosophical issues. Certain basic human needs get less and less space: social networks sunder, the creative components are disappearing from the work place, the material side of existence is growing at the cost of the common sense, the rapid changes promote insecurity and raise the potential for frustration. On top of that, (western) society no longer orients itself to a common standard of values. "Sects," in these times of changing values, offer themselves as an overflow valve for the insecurities associated with change: they offer a feeling of community, compensate for social isolation, give an identity to individuals who feel like they are only numbers, and provide (often absolute) answers to issues of meaning, i.e. they satisfy the need for security, as was determined by a study done in 1982 about sects in Romandie in 1982. [5]
Parallel to the rapidly increasing operation of local, regional and national commercial units in the global dimension of commerce ("world economy") with the socio-cultural changes, a globalization on the plane of religious belief can be observed which "is characterized in that certain 'religious undertakings' are pursuing an international strategy." It is therefore obvious that the religious change is also taking place in its own religion market in which consumers can select denominations or whole systems of belief. The complexity and vast number of movements, from a sociological perspective, amounts to one of the characteristics of the modern and post-modern era. Along with this a unique "cultic milieu" has arisen: "In English, the word 'cult' primarily describes groups which have 'deviated' from reigning religious traditions. However, they can only come about in large numbers with the cooperation of a favorable milieu. This 'milieu' is the heterogenous selection of "deviating" systems of belief and their associated practices. This does not absolutely have to do with 'religions' in the narrow sense. In the "cultic milieu' you face alternative medicine, parapsychology, exotic spiritual movements, interests in aliens, esoteric-occultism, etc. Even though there is no explicit relationship among them, these very different groups, in actuality, have a tendency to mutually strengthen each other. They are enveloped in an atmosphere which promotes the search for new values, and anyone who has an interest in one area will sooner or later necessarily come into contact with the others, because their information sources are frequently the same
"We are assisting in the religious domain, paralleling to the economical one, to a form of wwide internationalization characterized by the fact that some religious enterprises have a wwide strategy and cannot be understood outside this view.[...] To describe this religious change, as all of us are victims of our society's economization, a model is needed to understand it: it's the market model which appears the best fit to-day. The present religious situation is characterized by the fact that it elaborates an open market on the religious plan, where the consumer chooses freely his memberships and his beliefs system."
6. Mayer, Jean-François: Sekten und alternative Religiosität, in: Hugger, Paul (Hg.): Handbuch der schweizerischen Volkskultur. Leben zwischen Tradition und Moderne – ein Panorama des schweizerischen Alltags, Band 3, Zürich 1992, p. 1482.
7. Mayer, Sekten und alternative Religiosität, p. 1472.
8. Mayer, Sekten und alternative Religiosität, p. 1472.6 Mayer Jean-François, Phénomène des sectes et religiosité parallèle quelques aspects du pluralisme religieux, p. 1474.
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... some persons, though much convinced of their life's conception, will far more easily abandon it, that was supposed. Others will even go as far as to abandon a scientifically established knowledge to adhere to pseudo-scientific principles.
In the future, the continued propagation of religious contents and forms will not be easily stopped. The first effect is that drifts will increase, whatever individual hidden dramas, "unspectacluar", or collective tragedies, explosive ones, therefore "spectacular". Doing an analogy of the phenomenon with an illness or epidemy is nevertheless wrong. It presupposes that if one finds the good remedy, there would be a simple solution; we must get rid of this illusion. Secondly, the very "large" religious and "parralleled to religion" market (the cultic milieu, according Campbell), very permeable, - the "tourism" of adepts is important between the movements - cannot be considered and judged as a unique unit. Third, the persons concerned must not be put under supervision, and must be taken seriously. Fourth, the phenomenon is too much dynamic, its rapid evolution is a source of enormous problems for the observer: " shall the things he writes to-day be still valuable to-morrow? The main lines wshall they be the same, or could some yet unknown groups be on top of minority religions?"7
The continuing broadening of the variety of technical possibilities and of beliefs does not mean though a "statistical explosion of the number of adepts; the membership of many groups is low"8 ....[resume: some considerations about the dangers...]...society must therefore answer preventively to excesses by using very important means on a very large scale. Because of this, it's needed to identify the structures, charateristics and methods from the religious, spiritual, esocteric movements and the offers that can be found on the market of spiritual asistance, which, when they could be labeled as dangerous or problematic, are potentially leading to conflicts.
3 Taking inventory
As concerns quantitative statements, these statements are at odds with each other. Based on the Swiss federal census of 1990, Jean-François Mayer stated that fewer than 2% of the population say they belong to denominations („croyances") "as chartered groups" outside of the major religions; these adherents then divide themselves up into about 300 religious groups. In a different spot the same author speaks about "less than 3%" and "at least 200 to 300 groups" [9], in yet other spots "300 to 600 groups." The Ecumenical Work Group of "New Religious Movements in Switzerland" states the number as being over 600 groups [1010], as does journalist Hugo Stamm. According to statements by Prof. Georg Schmid of the Information Agency of the Evangelical German-Swiss Churches and from the 7th edition which is being prepared of the handbook by Oswald Eggenberger, 700 to 800 groups are mentioned. The diverging numbers [1111] are due in part to the various interests of the authors, but also go back to the phenomenon itself. Not all groups are constructed as such, statistically accounted for or respectively understandable.
The danger involved with directing attention toward little known groups is part of an uncontrolled, unstructured and indecipherable gray zone. Statistically speaking, Switzerland (along with Great Britain and the Netherlands) appears most strongly affected by the multiplicity of religious movements.
According to the 1990 Swiss census, 39.98% of the population (about 2.7 mil.) were Protestant [12] (1980: 44.3%) and 46.32% Catholic [13] (about 3.1 mil)(1980: 47.9%). About 58,000 people belonged to "other Christian denominations" [14] and another 30,000 to "other religious denominations and philosophies" (which include Buddhists and others). 17,500 people said they were Jewish and 152,000 Mohammedan. About 51,000 people stated "no affiliation," while 100,000 people made no statement as to their religious preferences.
The number who described themselves as not belonging to any religion grew from 3.8% in 1980 to 7.4% in 1990. The two major Christian churches no longer represent the standard for an ever growing number of religiously oriented people in issues of faith, and it is estimated today that about a fifth of Swiss men and women would describe themselves as not belonging to any religion or denomination. These numbers, coupled with evidence that the Jehovah's Witness and others have contributed to the social integration of immigrants from Italy, Spain and Portugal, lead one to the following conclusion: The religious landscape in Switzerland differentiates itself in its complexity only unessentially from the religious models of other states of our cultural circle - a "new situation in a country which has never had a colonial tradition and has not designated itself as an immigrant country." [1515]
- 7 Mayer Jean-François, Phénomène des sectes et religiosité parallèle quelques aspects du pluralisme religieux, p. 1466.
8 Mayer Jean-François, Phénomène des sectes et religiosité parallèle quelques aspects du pluralisme religieux, p. 1466.
- 9 Mayer Jean-François, La liberté religieuse à l’heure du pluralisme, Rutherford Institute, Rapport sur la Suisse, Paris, août 1997, p.3.
10 Groupe de travail œcuménique « Neue Religiöse Bewegungen in der Schweiz », Entwicklungen von 1979 – 1997, p. 5.
11 Le rapport d’une commission d’enquête parlementaire française (Les sectes en France, Rapport Parlementaire, Paris 1996, p. 41) souli-gne
les difficultés en matière d’évaluation quantitative.
12 Eglises évangéliques réformées, églises évangéliques méthodistes, autres églises et communautées protestants.
13 Eglise catholique romaine, église catholique-chrétienne, églises orthodoxes et églises chrétiennes des rites d’Orient.17
To day-Switzerland is considered to be a country of "importation" of such movements. It has also its own groups (Methernita, Uriella) but does not generally export its mystics.[resume: some more about religions and affiliations in Switzerland]
Some persons having been heard were thinking that the religious market in Switzerland, with its spiritual demand and the very large offer of groups and variety of possible orientations, is self-regulated because of two causes. First, the large variety of the offer does not constitute the best milieu to anchor durably and stablyn, and secondly, when the economical conditions are normal, the political and religious extremes self-balance automatically. The swiss citizen hate the extremes.
- 14 Eglise néo-apostolique (env. 30'000), Témoins de Jéhovah (19'500), autres communautés chrétiennes (8‘300).
15 Roland Campiche et Claude Bovay, in Mayer, Jean-François, La liberté religieuse à l’heure du pluralisme, Rutherford Institute, Rapport sur
la Suisse, Paris, août 1997, p.2.
16 Office fédéral de la statistique : L'évolution de l'appartenance religieuse et confessionnelle en Suisse, Berne 1997.18Even if more and more people declare no affiliation to a church-like organization, they have their faith regardless, so that "our society can be characterized much more as having a surplus of faith - appearing in varied and numerous forms - rather than a shortage. Groups included under the collective term "new religious movements," which no longer contain Christian concepts in the widest sense, started to get their foothold in Switzerland in the 1950s and 1960s. Part of them were "cultural imports" from India, Japan or the Asiatic cultural regions and the esoteric intellectual world; others were "cultural innovations" from within the Occidental intellectual world which did not invoke the Christian tradition (e.g., Scientology).
New indigenous religious are getting more rare. Even if Switzerland amounts to a "turntable" in the so-called religion market, the developments do not essentially differ in comparison to other nations because "in view of the crisis of the individual, every western society today is susceptible to sects" - to be sure the relative material wealth has an effect on the susceptibility to sects, "The rich and unhappy person can rather frequently be encountered in Switzerland."
For the religions market of Switzerland with a spiritual demand and a suitably wide selection of orientations and movements several of the interviewed people are not pursuing self-regulation on two grounds: for one thing an abundance of the offerings do not present the best cultural medium for a stable and lasting anchorage, [17 ] for another "political and religious extremes in normal business relations" tend to regulate themselves. "The Swiss are not inclined toward extremes."
The opinion of those interviewed that there are differences between French and German Switzerland in the attitude toward assimilative movements - French Switzerland was said to be more tolerant - has been compromised after the Solar Temple tragedy. Interestingly enough it is western Switzerland which strives for inter-cantonal cooperation. Besides that, references were made to the influence of the current neighboring countries on the attitude of the language groups in Switzerland, i.e., Germany, France and Italy.
4 The Commission's analysis
41 Preliminary Remark: Human rights, Basic rights and Constitutional sovereignty as guarantees of freedom, equal opportunity and tolerance
From the beginning the Commission unanimously agreed that its investigation could not revolve around content of a religious or a world or other view by which people have been trying to explain their existence since time immemorial. The freedom necessary for the search for the truth
- 17 Cf. position de la délégation suisse à la réunion de l'OSCE sur la liberté de religion (Vienne, 22 mars 1999)
19 Preliminary Remark: Human rights, Basic rights and Constitutional sovereignty as guarantees of freedom, equal opportunity and tolerance
From the beginning the Commission unanimously agreed that its investigation could not revolve around content of a religious or a world or other view by which people have been trying to explain their existence since time immemorial. The freedom necessary for the search for the truth
19If the search of truth engaged under its religious enrollment would generate more freedom in every case, this present analysis would not have any motive to exist. Alas, the contrary is sometimes true. Indeed, they are some infringements against basic and democratic individual rights (by instance the free will, the expression freedom, evn the physical integrity).
42 About structures and characteristics
421 Dynamic component
The "cults" phenomenon is not specifically a christian one. It is visible in and out of main religions.
Preliminary Remark: Human rights, Basic rights and Constitutional sovereignty as guarantees of freedom, equal opportunity and tolerance
From the beginning the Commission unanimously agreed that its investigation could not revolve around content of a religious or a world or other view by which people have been trying to explain their existence since time immemorial. The freedom necessary for the search for the truth
- 18 Au niveau international, cette disposition trouve son pendant à l'article 18, 2e alinéa du Pacte international relatif aux droits civils et politiques.
19 Art. 9, 2 e
al. CEDH: "La liberté de manifester sa religion ou ses convictions ne peut faire l'objet d'autres restrictions que celles qui, prévues
par la loi, constituent des mesures nécessaires, dans une société démocratique, à la sécurité publique, à la protection de l'ordre, de la
santé ou de la morale publiques, ou à la protection des droits et libertés d'autrui".
Art. 18, 3e al. PDCP: "La liberté de manifester sa religion ou ses convictions ne peut faire l'objet que des seules restrictions prévues par la
loi et qui sont nécessaires à la protection de la sécurité, de l'ordre et de la santé publique, ou de la morale ou des libertés et droits fondamentaux d'autrui".20
Stage 1: The feeling of being something special is normal for any human community, for state churches, political parties, sport associations, etc.
Stage 2: Man and wife a not only something special, but better than the others - that is also normal: but if I were to find that my state church or political party were not better than the others, I would no longer be a part of them. The others also belong to a community which they believe to be better than the others.
Stage 3: I belong to the best group of all which all others should emulate: there is a sense of mission and a missionary pressure towards recruitment for one's own group. Not the state churches as organizations, but probably the currents within them could be counted as part of this: the non-denominational churches demonstrate extensive recruitment operation and emphasize membership in step 3, for instance with their Christ testimonials, in that everybody should believe in Christ the way they do.
Stage 4: (Fundamentalism step): one has sole salvation and has divine truth (even if not exclusive). The teaching is perfect and comes from heaven. He who teaches and believes as I do also stands in the truth - he who teaches or believes differently is being ruined by his own or demonic thoughts. He who does not cooperate "is lost." Fundamentalists worship their teachings; fully developed sects have even deified the group itself. [...] The state churches are no longer in this category, but once were (large communities can also deviate into the high sect stages). Sect step 4 is reached by many people, including psychological groups. [...]
"5th level: "We'll be the only one to know the aeternal salvation and the only ones in Heaven". The others are either subjects to missionary activities or just prone to damnation. Persons having not that faith should be strongly avoided, their atheism being hell-inspired.21
Stage 1: The feeling of being something special is normal for any human community, for state churches, political parties, sport associations, etc.
Stage 2: Man and wife a not only something special, but better than the others - that is also normal: but if I were to find that my state church or political party were not better than the others, I would no longer be a part of them. The others also belong to a community which they believe to be better than the others.
Stage 3: I belong to the best group of all which all others should emulate: there is a sense of mission and a missionary pressure towards recruitment for one's own group. Not the state churches as organizations, but probably the currents within them could be counted as part of this: the non-denominational churches demonstrate extensive recruitment operation and emphasize membership in step 3, for instance with their Christ testimonials, in that everybody should believe in Christ the way they do.
Stage 4: (Fundamentalism step): one has sole salvation and has divine truth (even if not exclusive). The teaching is perfect and comes from heaven. He who teaches and believes as I do also stands in the truth - he who teaches or believes differently is being ruined by his own or demonic thoughts. He who does not cooperate "is lost." Fundamentalists worship their teachings; fully developed sects have even deified the group itself. [...] The state churches are no longer in this category, but once were (large communities can also deviate into the high sect stages). Sect step 4 is reached by many people, including psychological groups. [...]
Central criteria for the tendency to go in the direction of the dynamic are internal discussion and open debates: these are guaranteed and stay with the group in the lower stages; if they are eradicated, it drives the group upward. The connection between the possibility of having internal discussion and the the degree of sectarianism is easily recognizable.
422 ""Acquiring" Concepts of World and People
Besides of that dimension, some characteristics of a formal and structural nature as well as their views upon the universe and on man concur to explain the attitude of movements toward their members and society:
Reduced, manichaean perception of the reality, most generally schematic, with some "occult knowledge": relativisation or intermediate positions are made impossible.
Universal models of solutions exist - for people or globally - neat and immanent.22
Hierarchized structures characterized by a form of subordination and mutual control lead to an excessive dependency: decision and responsability are deputed to a "higher competence". 20
An absolute guru, a prophet, a messiah or a saviour, man or woman, pretends to know the absolute truth toward salvation and to get there, he gives an elaborated concept, also absolute, that does not fit practically to the usual human experiences in the mystic/spiritual areas. Moreover, such a "superior agency" can live faraway or be dead, therefore unaccessible in both circumstances. It can alos happen that the movement pretends a desincarnated doctrine, not depending of somebody.
The group's "truth" is sacralized (does not accept any criticism). It is radically imposed, using someimes extremist methods: conspiration (from outside) theories are sometimes invented 21 , fear (from some group members) somewhat exploited aand reinforced, dependencies are created and increased (aily meetings, group isolation, members isolation, group's controls etc.) Such "truths" are instutionnalized through endoctrination techniques and manipulation's processes (group's dynamic processes, rites, artificial language).
- 20 Gasper et al., Lexikon der Sekten, Sondergruppen und Weltanschauungen, p. 977.
21 Sous nos latitudes, ces théories sont presque toujours d'inspiration antisémite; cf. à ce sujet Tangram: bulletin de la Commission fédérale
contre le racisme, n°6, "Religion et ésotérisme à la dérive?"23
According to the persons having been heard, an approach referring to structural and methods characteristics does not affect the freedom of consciousness and beliefs guaranteed by the Constitution. Therefore, Stete is outside of the critics: it does not rule the universe's concepts and group's views. Nevertheless, structures, methods and contents cannot always be separated. It is not possible to renounce to think about the ideological content when this ideology - always based on man's view -is part of the method. When such ideology is racist or fascist and is openly professed, the present legal bases (penal code art. 261, racial discrimination) allow intervention (which is not the case when such ideas are done in private closed circles; this shows information's needs and importance). Racist or antisemitic tendencies, or ultra-right or facist views, can be observed under different forms.22
groups or publications openly declaring racist, antisemitic or negationist opinions
doctrines showing their relationship with older racist or antisemitic views, sometimes inherent to the mental views of that older period (these are more dangerous, but it is harder to expose them). It is really needed here that tenants of such doctrine expose the older tradition to a critical reexamination, that they distance themselves from the racist elements shown in the older doctrine, and they are reinterpreted, theologically or religiously speaking.
anti-democratic doctrines Anti-democratic doctrines contradicting humanist and egalitarist values which are the bases of our society.Moreover, a neat separation is'nt possible either when a method affecting fundamental rights is a product or result of the ideology.
This happens notably when group's internal critic (of the ideology content) is interpreted as being a "Devil's Temptation" or attributed to a member's lack of faithfulness towards his community and that it is (sometimes) punished by internal "justice commites".
Sexual exploitation too can have its roots into the internnal group's structures such as submission and obedience. It can alos be justified by ideological causes, especially when it is designed as a "sacred action",
- 22 Cf. différents textes in Tangram, n°6.
or if it is the result of a certain member preference presented as the "guru's choice", that member considering also himself as such. Such sad practices, whose victims are often children, are different from what can be observed about sexual exploitation in society, as here the guilty don't act alone or for personal motives.423 Endoctrination as a prinicpal characteristic
Because of structural characteristics such as the cultic dynamic component, it is impossible to renounce to value judgements about the destructive and dangerous behaviour of groups. These judgements must be regularly examined to fit to the dynamic component and to fit to the high obligations related to fundamental values protection.
It is therefore possible to establish a first conclusion about the test subject. Necessity to find a definition faces the fact the phenomenon size, which can be studied from many viewpoints, those views being sometimes diverging. Matter of factly, a "hard core" of movements exists, those movements being potentially conflictual and describable as endoctrinating movements or groups.
The term "indoctrination" fits to groups whose structural characteristics described above are very evident and source of problems. Such a classification can be done independently of the group's age (sectarianism can also be observed into traditional churches), or qualification as religious, spiritual, or esocteric groups, or screen organizations working on the spiritual help market.
Basically, the term used in the report is endoctrinating movement or group. The Commission is aware that renouncing to use "cult" is not satisfying, as "cult" is a provocative word having a political dimension and part of the political slang. Abandoning that word could have the effect to let people abandoned to organized and powerful groups.23
The observations done about quantitative estimation can also be applied here: it would be misleading to limit the debate to endoctrinating methods and
- 23 Flammer Philipp, « 'Sekte' : Können wir auf dieses Wort verzichten ? » Conférence à la Paulus-Akademie de Zurich les 16 et 17 mars
1996 sur le sujet : « Missbrauchte Sehnsucht. Oder : Was ist eine Sekte ? », in : InfoSekta, Tätigkeitsbericht 1996, p. 27.
structures to the communities and communities members only.[resume: some more about political and economical implications of these groups...]... The cults presence into the economical world has some influence: their members can be active executive into companies or act as "economy consultants". Moreover, as it is a market phenomenon as such, we find that the phenomenon has also a financial component, by instance the inextricable debt situations met, or their ineluctable effects, or the elaboration of financial empires and their well known activities. Whatever the groups or other parts of that market - structured or not - were religious, or are considering themselves esoteric, or lean toward psychology, whatever their propositions of therapeutical unscientific methods, or based on New Age ideas, that does not change anything about them. Though that is not always possible, their structures and methods must be examined independently of the contents (religion, soul salvation, healing etc.)
43 General problems
Next part deals intodescription of problems into thesocial context, related to specialized services and authorities. Problems directly affecting the persons shall be dealt into chapter 44. (Specific problems of directly concerned individuals). The commission opinion is that it is not always possible to differentiate between society/general problems and specific/individual problems.
Some problems are under both areas.
431 Insufficient information
Despite the large size of informations detained by individuals, independant informations services or Churches, concerned persons organizations and some administrative services, they are large parts missing, mostly about many groups, small ones, new ones or constantly moving ones.
Regarding large groups since long known, we could observe that last news comes always later than the present situation.
26
[resume: the cause of these delays : services can't follow the large number of group and the constant evolution...the groups change very often their look, don't expose their true image, hide under screens etc. ... In some cases, some of those groups do appear only under "camouflages"... such groups use a mystery veil.
[resume: some groups ideologies can't be evaluated, such as OTS...]
27
The religiously characterizable groups, mostly organized as associations, are not known from tax services and mostly, don't consider to qualify themselves as possible taxpayers.
28
432 Research and help are few
[resume of the situation in the country, regarding researches done, either scientific or else.21.24, comparison with US situation where a whole branch of scholars deals with this... observation of the missing collaboration between the different bodies concerned...] ...
- 24 Interpellation relative à la lutte contre les sectes (98.3136 du 20 mars 1998).
29
... the National Swiss fund for scientific research supports a project entitled "Religion and social link" about observation of religion here. Under direction of the inter-university dept of religion science and history in Lauzanne University, the project purpose is to get a large swiss analysis of religions, from a social viewpoint. It should give a database and a network of organized searchers and specialized organizations. The purpose is not to find about abuses and potential conflicts.
433 Problems regarding actual application of laws
The Commission opinions is that presently applicable laws are generally sufficient. Nevertheless, their use is not sufficient - (lack of complaints) or those complaints are not enough applied (see by instance, some health cantonal legislations about healer's practices or other pseudo-medical healings.) It is also difficult to punish the things said that are not under article 261CP (by instance, racist or antisemitic speeches), as they are said privately. Moreover, legislation has some holes regarding minimum legal prescriptions regarding consumers protection (minimum criteria regarding contracts).
Experienced attorneys of ex-culties underline that judicial authorities think that cults clients are mostly vulnerable persons, they add that judicial authorities are quite timid about justification of divorces, children well-being, physical or psychic damages, if there is someone implicated into an endoctrinating movement. If the context presented looks religious or is pretended such, their fears are more important yet.
The motivations of such timidity come mostly from an insufficient estimation of the content and of the limits of ther beliefs' freedom . Judicial authorities fear also to have to make difficult choices or to be faced to judicial counter attacks, or through publications from the movements targeted.
Some missing things exist also regarding relative knowledge of efficiency and dangers of structures and methods of cults, as well as regarding understanding of resulting problems for victims of endoctrinating movements.
30
Such a situation can get this result: the person does not get protection she should have from the State, while the judicial tools exist. The public at large can suppose then that it cannot get help from the state regarding indoctrinating movements. Some of those groups exploit the impotency feeling, or even reinforce them knowingly into their own internal justice's system , or outside, through their threatening behaviour.
This impotency feeling adds to the number - already relatively important - of damages created by endoctrinating movements not yet officially exposed.From the opinion of the persons concerned, if there was no such importency feeling, many problems would never have happened, or had been less severe if laws had been applied: this comes from the underestimation of methods, those not being enough studied.
The next chapters - limits of state power, so-called "agreement" and "unclear responsabillity", expose the barriers existing when one wants to get legislation used and applied. They'll give some indications about the existing gaps.
434State Power limits
The following chapter describes any legal or technical limit which, from the experiences of those affected and their attorneys, could be problematic in practice. Limitations of state dealing with the Constitution (freedoms of belief and of religion) and other self-restrictions of the state are, as already mentioned, explicitly not regarded as objects of investigation nor are they put in question by the Commission.
Even if misunderstandings are recognized and the applicable laws are utilized, state intervention or protective measures more often than not prove impossible, or prescribed measures cannot be put into effect.
The reasons often lie in the fact that the injuries often affect the private sphere which escape state control or influence. Furthermore, abuses of constitutionally guaranteed basic rights, e.g., freedoms of religion and opinion, can only be fought when a certain threshold has been crossed, for instance when other basic rights have been seriously violated or endangered. In certain assimilative groups the chances for and efficiency of state measures are anticipated in advance in that the "group teachings" refuse state authority or at least put it subordinate to group authority. The consequent, progressive development of this tendency leads, internally to the group, to legitimization of civil disobedience or even to release of responsibility for keeping state rules.
Internationally organized groups are also in the position to avoid state measures by pulling back into other countries.
Further obstacles in getting state help arise when the group obligates its members/partners-in-contract to internal group justice. This problem also produces a feeling of powerlessness in those affected which often exacerbates the original problems and which makes discussion with the assimilative groups more difficult, among other things. This used to lead to individuals who were affected advocating or even employing illicit self-help measures (so-called "deprogramming").
31
435 Alleged "free will"
Everyone's attitude is not only depending from one's viewpoint, but also from the difficulty to recognize a dependency state. Indeed, modern psychology teaches that man has a tendency, often hard to understand, pushing him not only to obey social powers he considers as unavoidable, but also, to justify this attitude through good motivations and convictions, and even to let false prophets replace him to do this justification. Therefore, the individual can influence himself to think that he does things of his own free will, which leads him to accept an unavoidable submission without deconsidering himself in his own view.25
The most perceptible chracateristic of endoctrinating movements is the self-determinism/free-will alteration, which can go to a total loss of autonomy. If one observes that it's impossible to take an entirely autonomous decision, without any external influence, and that some influence is socially tolerated (and partly wanted), it becomes quite difficult to determine the limit from where such influence is excessive and socially intolerable.
It is necessary to find this difficultie's causes in the fact that manipulation and endoctrination methods create internal processes hard to observe from outside. External processes are very often limited to a small sized zone, or to the group itself, and are therefore difficult to recreate or to prove. Moreover, the way these manipulation processes are efficient, often very subtle, are not yet well known (contrary to what is known from war
- 25 Müller Jörg Paul, Religionsfreiheit – ihre Bedeutung, ihre innere und äussere Gefährdung. conférence introductive à l’occasion d’un sémi-naire
de l’OSCE du 16 au 19 avril 1996 à Varsovie, dans : Reformatio, décembre 1996, pp. 420 et ss.32
torture of prisoners or regarding advertisement), and they are controversial as well as untested. Estimation is also harder because the manipulated person contributes herself, because her unsatisfied needs and her distress, to make her prone to such manipulations.
The problem is that when those persons ask for help from officials, they have a hard time to prove the elements constituting the offences (damages, fraud), or to convince the authorities that their is real offence against the things juridically protected.
The critic of endoctrinating movements must therefore face the main questions: to what extent is the free will respected, to what extent the members membership (and obedience) is self-determined and to what extent the community allows its members to leave whenever they want, without exerting pressures, and while allowing them to be released from other "engagements" accepted "because of credulity", those not being linked to the movement as such. This question' answer is important for the State , when movements go as far as refusing every civil authority and that, by instance, they are preventing children to go to public schools or when they substract their private schools from state's authority (cantons).436 Unclear Responsability
When the offences are committed in the internal context of endoctrinating groups, the conditions are very different from those committed under other circumstances.
Indeed, the person damaged does not observe immediatly that he she has been the victim of an offensive act; moreover, it is hard to know who is responsible for such offense.
The reasons of this problem comes partly from the fact that the guilty and victim roles are often intermixed. Either the victim has herself been part of such activities against other members, either she has been "agreeing" to such acts. Offences are generally committted not because of an individual fault, but rather because of a senior ùmember order, or from a higher organization order - whose identity is unknown and who lives in a foreign country - or due to internal instructions doctrines. Often, such organizations orders structures or formations leading to a decrease of responsability feelings or "good sense". Absolute priority of internal groups values against judicially protected things - protected by the exterior world - , coming from a paranoïd doctrine, or a doctrine wishing the worldwide salvation - produces guilties having no guilt sense neither restraint.33
The problem lies in a situation such as this only being recognizable with an awareness of the inner structure of the group or when the psychic mechanisms are visible. If the type of knowledge needed to to this is missing, the result may be that the investigative authorities unjustly take no action. If the teachings prescribed the criminal conduct, and if the author is unknown or unavailable, then the person who carried out the action is left to be punished, which may be adequate neither from the idea of justice nor as a general preventive measure. The educational aspect of punishment has no effect on the convictions of the doer if the criminal proceedings lead to closer association with the group or teachings.
437 Fear and financial dependency
From the counselling work it is evident that "victims" very often are afraid to defend their rights by taking all the available steps possible.
The reasons, in the opinions of the experts, are primarily because separation from an endoctrinating group seldom takes place in a single step, but consists of a long process. Frequently the remnants of "group-think" have their effect, along with feelings of shame and guilt. Because of this, those who wish to depart often have difficulty in recognizing and maintaining their own self-interests. The long duration of the separation often exceeds the statute of limitations. Because many groups' systems bring isolation upon their adherents from social contacts outside the group, the environment after the departure is lacking in being able to offer the necessary support. Several groups incite this fear by means of a strategy of aversion or an outwardly aggressive appearance.
Some groups excite that fear through really terrorizing strategies, and through an agressive behaviour toward external surroundings. Moreover, if one observes clearly the situation, one is led to conclude that the financial power and agressivity - issued from a motivation's excess - of some endoctrinating groups (under attack or when defending) inhibit or stop the defense of legitimate interests of some persons and silences any public critic against them.
This is the source of problems on an individual and social level, as many infringements remain unpunished and are never repaired. Moreover this observation reinforces the total-power feeling of the group and helps it to think it's always right.
44 Specific problems for those directly concerned
This chapter - contrary to chapter 43 which dealt with general social area's problems - deals to questions related to direct and severe effects on the persons directly concerned
34
Those have been extensively dicussed publicly: exploitation, excessive links, health hazards, children's possessions hazards and other risks such as free will alteration. We have firts to underline the fact that the problems here are not present in every endoctrinating group. Moreover, the size and force of those phenomena are very different from a group to another. Nevertheless, those problems are typical of free-will alteration characterizing endoctrinating groups.
441 Exploitation
Exploitation is one of the most evident aspects observable by a large public. One should normally start from this principle: the contribution is from own's will. But here we have badly paid jobs, pressures to get fortunes transferred (spared money or heritage) to the group, insufficient protection regarding insurance, or debts profiting to the group. Human exploitation is also visible there. Some groups abuse their adepts' idealism or are using their relations to proselytize new members or for other influences.
442 Excessive links/attachements
Endoctrinating groups demonstrate some characeteristics such as systematic limitation or annihilation of their adepts free-will. This is a fast creating way for a member's dependency toward the group. Some recruiting methods lead already to this aim. Nevertheless, the group's practices and structures are the bases of such dependency, notably by use of a strong disciplinary system. Besides of economical dependency coming from the above explained dependency, psychic dependency is also very efficient, as those groups try to regulate and control every life's areas of their members , even the most intimate ones (family, intimate life, up to the "self thought"). Moreover, there is also the establishing of the social dependency , specially when endoctrinating groups members and the group are ancient, so much so as members fall into social isolation, being often cut since long with their before-realtionships (a secondary manifestation seeked through the group's doctrine).
To these "internal" barriers making it difficult to leave the group, some "external" barriers are added, such as preventive barriers - of judicial nature, (such as contracts having elaborate measures to castrating ones), and, more rarely, geographical measures such as geographic ones (isolated locations), or some recourse to physical violence.
35
Moreover, such groups, through a permanent activism, are trying to inhibit their members to think about their own situation.
443 Health hazards
Numerous endoctrinating groups doctrines include therapeutical practices, sometimes openly, sometimes hidden or even deniedly. Sometimes, the group pretends that healing comes from "spiritual evolution". When therapeutic parallel practices are dangerous, such dangers are generally denied by the doctrine - mostly infaillible - and, most of time, they are'nt considered by participants. Due to the anti-scientific attitude, the liabilities shown by scientific knowledge are often neglected, if not satanized. Due to the supreme purpose (soul salvation, world salvation), some hazards that would be considered by normal persons are then ignored. Therefore, the hazards of such practices is basically different from the hazards sometimes related to some traditionnal medecine practices (which is not only the "school's medicine"). Health is endangered by other practices which do not have healing as a purpose (such as some meditations, intensive questioning, "marathon" events, over-occupation). In such circumstances , such health hazard are denied or neglected in the name of a supreme ideal.
444 Children's possessions hazards
Doubts upon membership's, linkage's and participation's "free will" to an endoctrinating group's activities have already been discussed for adult members. For children, the self-determinism is yet more limited, if not completely unexisting. Some legal bases exist for their definition by other persons. Indeed, parents, sometimes the (village) , can dispose of the child's religious education 26 to his religious majority (16 years)27.
Most of the nefarious effects observed on adults can also affect children. Moreover, children can become victims of practices or doctrines targeting them -(notably the sexual abuses, or obliged meditation for youngers). 28 Some problems have specially dramatic results and
- 26 Article 303 CC en ce qui concerne les parents, article 378, 3 e alinéa CC pour le lieu d’origines des enfants sous tutelle.
4.4.5. Other Hazards or Encroachments on Self-Determination
It is already characteristic to hear from the individuals' problem areas that assimilative groups give priority to their own interests and sometimes work against the individual interests of their adherents, or demand a corresponding subjugation of individuals.
The alienation from a socially tolerable involvement by a movement (which can also be thoroughly associated with victims) lies in the methods applied with which the necessary preparedness and the accompanying conviction are produced in those affected. If, in this connection, misleading deceptive
27. Art. 303 ZGB for parents, Art. 378 Abs. 3 ZGB for the home community of minorities.
28. Art. 49 Abs. 3 BV, Art. 303 Abs. 3 ZGB
29. Because of a lack of space here, the numbers here will have to be incomplete. The German Enquete Commission addressed in detail the problem areas concerning children, compare EBS p. 200ff. and the Study of Work Circle 4 "Child Welfare / Child Abuse" in EZB p. 86ff. Also the Swedish "sect" report emphasizes the protection of children; "In Good Faith – Society and new religious movements." See the English edition of 1998. (Original publication in Swedish: 392 pages).
- 27 Article 49, 3e alinéa cst., article 303, 3e alinéa CC.
28 L’énumération de toutes les pratiques dirigées contre les enfants ne saurait être exhaustive pour des raisons de place. La commission d’enquête du Bundestag allemand s’est attaquée au problème spécifique des enfants dans les « sectes », voir rapport final de cette commission, pp. 200 et ss, ainsi que l’étude « Arbeitskreis 4 - Kindeswohl/Kindesmissbrauch», pp. 86 et ss. du rapport intermédiaire de cette même commission.36
lasting ones (between them, the years lost instead of a diversified evolution and formation, isolation from other children and influences, practices from some groups forbidding public school teaching, or who get their children into private school outside of state reach, as said above, chapter 435). Due to their weakness and lack of experience, children are far less armed than adult to defend.
indoctrinating methods used, then the partial or entire "exercise" of self-determination is no more a matter of the individual - the state may and must step in (insofar as is possible). Extreme examples are those cases in which a group internal deliverance or persecution scenario drives the adherents into a collective suicide or another self-made mission (e.g., Solar Temple, Heaven's Gate) or to induce the commission of crimes (e.g. Aum sect). But even in less spectacular events (e.g., "instant" conversions; complete turnarounds of life after a course of several days duration, e.g., by leaving a previously intact family; inability to have a discussion, since the instruction of the group must always be adhered to or only sentences of belief may be stated without entering into a counter-argument) gives the outside observer, at least, the impression that the ability of self-determination is strongly restricted or even neutralized.
Since not just the civil and criminal codes, but also democracy, is based on the axiom of one's own responsible self-determination, even a liberal constitutional state may not idly stand by if assimilative groups systematically attempt to undermine the autonomy of the individual or to neutralize them.
445
45
indoctrinating methods used, then the partial or entire "exercise" of self-determination is no more a matter of the individual - the state may and must step in (insofar as is possible). Extreme examples are those cases in which a group internal deliverance or persecution scenario drives the adherents into a collective suicide or another self-made mission (e.g., Solar Temple, Heaven's Gate) or to induce the commission of crimes (e.g. Aum sect). But even in less spectacular events (e.g., "instant" conversions; complete turnarounds of life after a course of several days duration, e.g., by leaving a previously intact family; inability to have a discussion, since the instruction of the group must always be adhered to or only sentences of belief may be stated without entering into a counter-argument) gives the outside observer, at least, the impression that the ability of self-determination is strongly restricted or even neutralized.
Since not just the civil and criminal codes, but also democracy, is based on the axiom of one's own responsible self-determination, even a liberal constitutional state may not idly stand by if assimilative groups systematically attempt to undermine the autonomy of the individual or to neutralize them.
37
dans la pacification de la population et la protection de l’individu à l’égard des grandes communautés religieuses après la guerre du Sonderbund. Ces dispositions ont contribué de ma-nière cruciale à la cohésion de l’Etat fédéral. La liberté religieuse est également garantie par l’article 9 de la Convention de sauvegarde des droits de l'homme et des libertés fondamentales (CEDH) et par l'article 18 du Pacte international relatif aux droits civils et politiques (PDCP) qui rangent la vie religieuse dans les droits fondamentaux afin qu’elle soit protégée dans son intégralité. Les citoyens décident librement des questions religieuses, ils peuvent exprimer leurs convictions, propager des idéologies religieuses et exprimer leurs convictions en participant à des manifestations religieuses (liberté de culte).
« L’évolution [...] a eu des effets sur les rapports entre la société et la religion, plus précisément sur l’Etat et les Eglises. Si au XIX e siècle, on a introduit dans la Constitution toute une série d’articles qui faisaient de l’Etat un arbitre sur le plan religieux, la tendance est aujourd’hui d’abandonner toute intervention dans ce domaine. Le projet de révision de la Constitution fédérale [...] est sur ce point tout à fait explicite : abandon de tous les articles qui concernent les problèmes de l’arbitrage de l’Etat pour ne retenir qu’un article sur la question de la liberté de conscience. » La réglementation des rapports entre l’Eglise et l’Etat revient aux cantons qui, tous, reconnaissent les grandes communautés religieuses. Les cantons de Neuchâtel et de Genève connaissent la séparation de l’Eglise et de l’Etat. La reconnaissance en tant qu’Eglise assure à cette dernière une protection juridique de la part de l’Etat ainsi que des privilèges tels que l’exonération fiscale (appliqué avec beaucoup de retenue par la Confédération et de manière diverse par les cantons), la libération du service militaire ou un droit de regard dans les affaires scolaires et dans la vie publique. Bien sûr, en retour, cette reconnaissance implique la reconnaissance de la légalité constitutionnelle et de la haute surveillance de l’Etat en ce qui concerne ses intérêts séculiers. Les Eglises libres, sans statut de droit public, ainsi que les « sectes » et pratiquement toutes les communautés non chrétiennes
ressortissent au droit privé (articles 60 et suivants CC).29
En 1989, dans une réponse à une question ordinaire – qui se référait explicitement à l’appartenance à des sectes et à la liberté personnelle – le Conseil fédéral a renvoyé à l’initiative privée.30
Après le drame de l’OTS, le Conseil fédéral et le Parlement ont refusé la création d’un Office fédéral des questions religieuses en se référant à la souveraineté cantonale en matière de culte.31 Les autres réponses du Gouvernement à des interventions parlementaires ont tou-
- Le rapport de l’enquête suédoise sur les « sectes » insiste sur la protection des enfants ; In Good Faith – Society and new religious movements.
A ce sujet, voir résumé en langue anglaise de 1998 (version originale en suédois : 392 pages).
29 Neues Staatskundelexikon für Politik, Recht, Wirtschaft, Gesellschaft. Aarau und Zürich, 1996
30 Question ordinaire 88.1068 appartenance à des sectes et liberté personnelle.
31 Motion pour un office fédéral des questions religieuses du 14 décembre 1993 (93.3606) ainsi que l’interpellation office fédéral des questions religieuses du 6 octobre 1994 (94.3418).38
jours été empreintes de beaucoup de retenue et se sont référées aux éléments suivants : droits fondamentaux (en particulier la liberté de conscience et de croyance), souveraineté des cantons en matière d’affaires ecclésiastiques, les conditions préalables à toute intervention de l’Etat (notamment délits, mise en danger de la sécurité de l’Etat), efficacité de la législation en vigueur (doit pénal et civil, instruments cantonaux en matière de police sanitaire et du commerce).
Jusqu’à présent, le Conseil fédéral a rejeté toute action coordonnée au niveau de la Confédération pour des raisons financières. En mars 1998, il ne distinguait aucun signe indiquant que les cantons auraient de tels besoins et il doutait de l’efficacité d’une harmonisation des lois cantonales concernées.32
La retenue des autorités judiciaires a déjà été évoquée au chapitre 433. A quelques exceptions près, les parlementaires suisses ainsi que les membres du Gouvernement se sont également référés au principe juridique formel de la retenue en matière de croyances.
Contrairement à ce qui est le cas en Allemagne, le traitement systématique et engagé de tels sujets dans la presse écrite n’a porté que peu de fruits. Cette attitude passive règne également dans les partis politiques depuis les années 80. Les centres de consultation et d'information ainsi que les associations de parents actifs en la matière ne sont pas parvenus à développer des groupes de pression politique en tant que tels au niveau fédéral.
Selon l’une des personnes entendues, il serait juste, bien que de plus en plus problématique du point de vue juridique, de considérer la religion comme une affaire privée étant donné que les différences dues au niveau socioculturel dans notre société ont été sous-estimées ces vingt dernières années. Aujourd’hui, il faudrait considérer la religion comme une dimension de la vie sociale, ce qui « légitime l’intervention de l’Etat en la matière.»Le désengagement de l’Etat présente des risques en ce sens qu’il « apparaît désemparé par rapport au changement religieux contemporain et par rapport au fait que dans les différents cantons la tendance est de réagir de plus en plus au coup par coup et non plus de façon globale ».
Contrairement à la situation en Allemagne, en Suède et en France, la politique suisse n’a jusqu’à ce jour pas tenté d’enlever le caractère tabou à tout ce sujet, de le sortir du champ de la responsabilité privée et de lui donner le caractère d’une affaire publique.
En regardant ce qui se passe en Allemagne, la commission a relevé qu’une intervention de l’Etat ne contrevient pas au principe de la liberté de conscience et de croyance. Il ne s’agit pas de rechercher une attitude plus radicale envers les groupements intolérables, attitude qui aboutirait régulièrement à des demandes d’interdiction – ce qui, en Suisse et de l’avis de
32 Voir réponses aux interventions suivantes : interpellation relative à l’influence de l’église de scientologie en Suisse du 3 octobre 1996
(96.3505) ; interpellation relative à la lutte contre les sectes du 20 mars 1998 (98.3136) ; question ordinaire relative aux activités en rap-port
avec l’église de scientologie du 27 avril 1998 (98.1050)39
la commission également n’est ni pensable, ni souhaitable – mais bien de prises de position personnelles des politiciens, membres d’autorités législatives et exécutives, qui se prononceraient sur le sujet comme c’est le cas chez nos voisins allemands. Contrairement à la Suisse, ils ont assimilé les peurs de la population (qui sont reprises et débattues par les médias). Ils ont ainsi reconnu la dimension sociale du problème. Des ministres ont mandaté des études, certains Länder ont lancé de larges campagnes d’information, le Bundestag a mis sur pied une commission d’enquête dotée d’un personnel professionnel, les tribunaux et les partis politiques ont pris des décisions claires et Helmut Kohl, le Chancelier de l’époque, est également intervenu publiquement à ce sujet. L’un des ministres allemands a même été acquitté par un tribunal : il peut en effet continuer de recourir aux termes de «Wirtschaftskrake», «wirtschaftskriminelle Organisation» et de «Geldwäscheorganisation» pour qualifier un groupement.
De telles prises de position jouent le rôle d’un signal pour la population et ont également un effet préventif, tant il est vrai que les personnes concernées (surtout les parents) sont alors bien plus facilement disposées à se préoccuper du sujet. En outre, ces prises de position sont également prises en compte par le pouvoir législatif.
Entre-temps, divers cantons ont entrepris certaines démarches en la matière : Suite à une motion du 1996, le Grand Conseil du canton de Bâle-Ville a complété sa législation pénale. Ainsi, est punissable celui qui recrute ou tente de recruter des passants sur la voie publique au moyen de méthodes trompeuses ou déloyales. Ces dispositions sont entrées en vigueur à fin novembre 1998. Fin juin 1999, le Tribunal fédéral a rejeté une plainte de droit public déposée par l'Eglise de Scientologie à ce sujet.
Dans le canton de Genève, il est prévu de compléter le code de procédure pénale par des dispositions concernant les « dérives sectaires ». En particulier, les personnes victimes de mouvements endoctrinants pourront, en tant que partie civile ou en qualité de témoin, recourir à l’aide d’organismes spécialisés et reconnus dans le cadre de l’aide aux victimes.
Le groupe de travail intercantonal pour les questions relatives aux « sectes », constitué depuis septembre 1997 de représentants des cantons de Genève, de Neuchâtel, du Jura, de Fribourg, de Berne, du Tessin, du Valais et de Vaud. Actuellement, le « Centre d’information sur les croyances » est son projet principal (mené toutefois sans la participation des cantons du Jura, de Fribourg et de Berne).
Le 19 octobre 1998, le canton du Tessin a publié un volumineux rapport sur les « sectes religieuses » («sette religiose»). Ce rapport attribue une grande importance à l’application du dispositif législatif en vigueur ainsi qu’à l’information, l’éducation et la consultation40
et se référant notamment à la collaboration au sein du groupe de travail intercantonal dont le Tessin est membre.
Un projet vaudois prévoit de donner aux gymnasiens de 3 e année la possibilité de suivre un cours à options en histoire et science des religions. L’objectif de cet enseignement est de transmettre des connaissances générales dans ce domaine et de favoriser une prise de conscience dépassant le cadre d’une seule branche. A l’école, les sciences religieu-ses doivent favoriser la compréhension mutuelle et permettre d’approfondir la discussion relative à l’intégration. Cet enseignement abordera des concepts tels que le respect d’autrui, la solidarité, la responsabilité sociale du citoyen. L’introduction de ce programme est prévue pour l’année scolaire 2000/2001.
III Conclusions de la Commission et mesures possibles
1 Le travail de la commission en tant que processus de prise de conscience
Au cours de ses auditions et de ses discussions, la commission est devenue consciente du fait que le sujet des « sectes » et des mouvements endoctrinants est un phénomène complexe et controversé. Malgré le nombre élevé d’informations et ses réflexions intensives, elle n’a pas réussi à s’en faire une image complète. Elle a été confrontée à la contradiction entre la constatation de lacunes en matière d’information et de recherche d’une part, et, d’autre part, la description de cas individuels choquants d’abus manifestes. Une autre contradiction constatée concerne les abus avérés de certaines associations et la présentation qu’elles en ont faite elles-mêmes lorsque la commission leur en a donné l’occasion. En plus, même les spécialistes de ces questions ne sont pas toujours d’accord pour ce qui est du caractère religieux ou d’éventuelles tendances sectaires de certains groupements ainsi que de leurs techniques d’endoctrinement ou de manipulation, notamment en ce qui concerne les rapports
qu’ils entretiennent avec des personnes en quête de spiritualité ou de guérison. Certains groupements et certaines organisations tablent sur la liberté de conscience et de croyance afin de poursuivre dans son ombre des objectifs qui n’ont plus rien a voir avec ces libertés individuelles.
Les « sectes », les mouvements endoctrinants et les autres groupements, structurés ou non, mais également les offres pseudo-religieuses sur le marché de la guérison évoluent dans un environnement de pluralisme religieux marqué par une évolution rapide. Ce sont justement les discussions au sujet de la liberté religieuse (et d’autres libertés fondamentales) qui ont élargi l’angle de vision. L’importance sociale (et politique) du sujet s’en est retrouvée renforcée
: En Suisse, des convictions et des croyances religieuses inhabituelles et étrangères à notre patrimoine culturel judéo-chrétien traditionnel se rencontrent aussi au sein d’autres religions d’importance planétaire, en partie depuis plusieurs siècles. Entre-temps, leurs adeptes représentent déjà une partie non négligeable de la population suisse. C’est pour cela qu’il faut en principe aussi être conscient du fait que de nombreux citoyens et citoyennes de ce paix se réclament de l’islam (aujourd’hui troisième croyance en Suisse), du judaïsme ( depuis toujours ) ou d’autres convictions, tout en ayant la Suisse comme patrie émotionnel et politique. Puisqu’il est confronté à l’engagement religieux de ces citoyens (service militaire, prescriptions vestimentaires et alimentaires etc.), l’Etat ne pourra pas éviter de régler ses rapports avec les adhérents de toutes les religions et croyances. Il n’évitera donc pas non plus de devoir définir les notions de « religion » et d’« Eglise ».
La commission est consciente que42
l’origine du pluralisme culturel et religieux actuel découle entre autres de l’organisation libérale et démocratique de notre société,
que l’évolution ne peut être ni freinée, ni arrêtée ou dirigée dans une direction précise, les lois, les prescriptions ou autres moyens peuvent uniquement permettre de répondre aux excès, et
que les lois, les prescriptions ou autres moyens ne peuvent et ne doivent que prévenir les excès.Pour cette raison, la commission est parvenue à la conclusion que seule une culture empreinte de tolérance permet de tenir compte de la dynamique actuelle du processus social en matière de religion et de convictions. Dans ce domaine, les droits de l’homme s’imposent en tant que dénominateur commun et critère universel pour la société dans son ensemble. Accepter ce principe implique de reconnaître que l’essence culturelle propre à chaque groupement a des effets divers. La règle de base est l’obligation de dialoguer avec les religions des autres cultures. Il s’agit de faire comprendre que dans notre pays – parce que nous ne sommes ni en Chine, ni en Arabie Saoudite, mais en Suisse – ce sont les droits de l’homme au sens de la culture d’Europe centrale qui s’appliquent. En tant que garant de la tolérance 33 , l’Etat doit veiller à ce que les religions, les communautés et les groupes religieux – reconnus égaux en droits par l’Etat – reconnaissent et respectent les uns envers les autres, mais également envers leurs adhérents, au sein de leurs mouvements, les droits fondamentaux constitutionnellement garantis et participent plus activement au processus politique (par exemple élargissement du cercle des destinataires pour les procédures de consultation). Ainsi l’Etat répond de manière positive au critère de la liberté religieuse. Dans sa fonction de garant de la tolérance, il se doit également d’intervenir lorsque les droits de groupes ou de membres de groupes sont mis en danger ou réprimés. Il répond ainsi à une conception de la liberté religieuse qui s’exerce de manière critique et qui se doit de mettre des limites. Les déclarations de l’Etat, comme on les trouve déjà dans l’approche (scolaire) du canton de Vaud 34 , ont valeur de signal et peuvent – quelle que soit l’importance du défi – aplanir la voie vers une culture de tolérance.
Comme les dangers potentiels ne dépendent pas du caractère religieux ou non des objectifs des groupes concernés, il est donc envisageable, au niveau politique, de développer des critères généraux a partir des principes universels des droits de l’homme permettant de fixer les limites de la tolérance de l’Etat et de la société : image libérale de l’homme, volonté de
- 33 Cette approche est celle de la commission d’experts« Religion und Fernsehen ». A ce sujet, voir le rapport mandaté par le DFTCE intitulé Religiöse Fernsehveranstalter (Schlussbericht), Berne, septembre 1997.
34 Le plan d’études vaudois prévoit de donner aux gymnasiens de 3e année la possibilité de suivre un cours à options en histoire et science
des religions dont l’objectif est de transmettre des connaissances générales dans ce domaine et de favoriser une prise de conscience dépassant le cadre d’une seule branche afin d’atteindre une certaine compréhension des autres cultures et de se forger une propre opinion.43
dialogue, transparence, publicité des comptes, structures démocratiques de partenariat non contraignantes, respect de l’intégrité personnelle, respect de la législation en vigueur, enracinement dans le contexte social etc.352 Nécessité de mesures politiques et chemin en direction d’une politique en matière de « sectes »
La commission est d’avis que l’initiative privée à laquelle le Conseil fédéral avait renvoyé dans sa réponse à la question ordinaire citée plus haut ne semble actuellement plus suffisante.
Les efforts de certains cantons (législation, coordination de l’information, prises de position des autorités), mais aussi le fait que l’administration fédérale est confrontée à de telles questions le montrent bien. En outre, le Conseil fédéral doit, aujourd’hui déjà, prendre position dans ce domaine à l’occasion de ses réponses aux interventions parlementaires.
Pour cette raison, la commission estime que le fait que des services de l’administration fédérale doivent s’occuper de questions très diverses en liaison avec la problématique des «sectes» sans pouvoir se référer à des règles de bases unifiées formulées par le Gouvernement en tant qu’objectifs politiques constitue une lacune.
Au cours de l’avancement de l’examen, la commission a constaté l’absence de tout échange systématique d’informations entre les services administratifs concernés. De l’avis de la commission, pour ce qui est des mouvements endoctrinants, le Conseil fédéral semble se baser surtout sur l’opinion d’un fonctionnaire fédéral qui s’est spécialisé dans la problématique des «sectes» à titre privé, ce qui pose également un certain nombre de problèmes. En outre, la personne concernée se voit reprocher de ne pas garder une distance suffisante par rapports aux mouvements endoctrinants. Cette situation peut devenir problématique s’il devient tout à coup nécessaire de procéder rapidement à une analyse de risques (le passage au prochain millénaire provoque une atmosphère de fin du monde). Dans ces conditions, la réalisation d’une analyse crédible n’est pas suffisamment garantie et se transforme elle-même en risque. Une source d’informations unilatérale n’a que peu de chances d’être reconnue et acceptée par l’opinion publique. Elle se transforme même en sujet de critique bienvenu.
Tout d’abord, le Conseil fédéral est prié de prendre la problématique abordée dans ce rapport au sérieux et de considérer que les réponses qu’elle exige font partie des tâches d’un gouvernement. La commission attend de lui qu’il formule une politique en matière de «sectes» pouvant servir de base à l’action gouvernementale. A ce sujet, elle considère que l’article 15 de la Constitution révisée en général (et l’alinéa 4 en particulier) constitue une
- 35 A ce sujet, voir « Religiöse Fernsehveranstalter », rapport final de la Commission d’experts « Religion und Fernsehen » de septembre
1997 mandaté par le DFTCE, p. 10 ; la publicité des objectifs religieux ou le maintien de la paix religieuse sont d’autres critères spécifiques pour les producteurs d’émissions religieuses.44
base suffisante. Pour les personnes concernées, une attitude claire des autorités constitue un signal qui les conforte dans leur volonté de se défendre contre l’endoctrinement, contre les violations des droits fondamentaux et contre les promesses de guérison et de salut insuffisamment fondées. Une attitude claire de l’Etat est également très importante pour l’application de la loi. En effet, lorsque les biens juridiquement protégés sont menacés voire mis à mal ou lorsque les interventions de l’Etat outrepassent les limites fixées par les droits fondamentaux, les tribunaux et les autorités administratives doivent intervenir de manière décidée.
Comme les exemples allemands, autrichiens, français ou suédois le montrent, un travail d’information et de prévention soutenu par l’Etat contribue au débat sur ce sujet, tant il est vrai que les mouvements endoctrinants ou les « sectes » sont un sujet considéré comme tabou (la campagne anti-SIDA de la Confédération a montré de manière impressionnante combien le travail d’information de l’Etat contribue à faire tomber les tabous).
En vue de la formulation et de la mise en œuvre d’une politique en matière de «sectes» qui tiennent compte de l’importance du problème, la commission est d’avis que les tâches suivantes incombent au Conseil fédéral : la coordination (voir chapitre 21 ci-dessous),
la mise sur pied d’un service suisse d’information et de consultation (voir chapitre 22 ci-dessous)
et
l’encouragement de la recherche et de la collaboration (voir chapitre 23 ci-dessous).En outre, la commission est d’avis que le Conseil fédéral est tenu de prendre des mesures en matière de protection des consommateurs, du bien de l’enfant et de la santé (législation sanitaire) (voir chapitres 24 et suivants ci-dessous).
21 Coordination : une tâche centrale de la Confédération
L’une des caractéristiques principales qui marque les relations avec les sectes est la diversité des acteurs (services administratifs, autorités, cantons, tribunaux/autorités de tutelle, unités de recherches, services d’information et de consultation privés et des Eglises). En outre, ces derniers ont des approches différentes et, la plupart du temps, isolées. En d’autres termes, leur collaboration est lacunaire.
Dans le but d’assurer la mise en œuvre de la politique en matière de « sectes » et afin de créer les bases permettant une information harmonisée, de qualité et non contradictoire, la commission estime que le Conseil fédéral doit jouer un rôle central et assurer une triple coordination :1. Coordination administrative entre les différents acteurs
45
entre les divers offices fédéraux,
entre la Confédération et les cantons,
entre les cantons,
entre la recherche universitaire et les services d’information et de consultation pri-vés
et des églises et entre les organisations spécialisées,
dans le but d’assurer une collaboration transfrontalière au niveau international (ce
qui correspond également à une exigence du Parlement européen).362. Coordination au niveau du contenu
En particulier, le Conseil fédéral garantit
une approche interdisciplinaire dans la recherche et une mise à profit en Suisse des résultats et des expériences d’autres pays (et inversement) ; 37
que les différentes optiques et les différents intérêts de la recherche et de la consultation (services privés et des Eglises) soient rapprochés, voire réunis, en fa-veur d’une politique d’information homogène et d’une base d’action unifiée (voir chapitre 23 ci-dessous).La coordination au niveau du contenu peut être assurée au moyen d’un contrat de collaboration (éventuellement d’un mandat de prestations) élaboré sous la conduite de la Confédération. Ce contrat pourrait également servir de légitimation permettant d’obtenir le versement d’une aide financière des pouvoirs publics.
3. Coordination de la législation cantonale
Le Conseil fédéral assure la coordination dans le domaine des législations cantonales qui concernent le domaine des mouvements endoctrinants, en particulier dans le domaine des législations sanitaires (voir chapitre 243 ci-dessous).
22 Mise sur pied d’un service suisse d’information et de consultation
La commission estime qu’il est nécessaire de créer un service suisse d’information et de consultation.38 Elle est consciente que la Commission contre le racisme étudie des phénomènes tels que le racisme, l'antisémitisme et les tendances fascistoïdes, qui peuvent également être une composante des sectes et des mouvements endoctrinants. S'agissant des
- 36 Si le Conseil fédéral a reconnu la dimension internationale du problème, il l’a en revanche paradoxalement utilisé en tant qu’argument
pour exprimer ses doutes au sujet de l’efficacité d’un harmonisation des lois spécifiques des cantons ; interpellation Burgener relative à la
lutte contre les sectes (98.3136 du 20 mars 1998). Sans le même contexte, Madame Del Ponte, Procureur de la Confédération, a insisté
sur la nécessité d’une collaboration internationale en matière de police.
37 Si l’on considère la longue liste des sujets de recherche recommandés par la commission d’enquête du Bundestag allemand, on peut
s’attendre à de nombreux résultats en provenance d’Allemagne, même si, finalement, seul un nombre de projets restreint est réalisé, voir
rapport final de cette commission d’enquête, pp. 389 à 391.46
questions touchant les "sectes", il y aura lieu le cas échéant de mettre en oeuvre des synergies ou des modalités de collaboration entre un service d'information et de consultation et la Commission fédérale contre le racisme.
En guise d’introduction à ce point, il convient de relever qu’il y a beaucoup d’informations sur les mouvements endoctrinants (notamment auprès des services de consultation) et que les groupements à caractère religieux informent également eux-mêmes. Cependant ces sources d’informations sont régulièrement critiquées pour leur manque d’objectivité et de crédibilité.
De plus, il n’est pas possible de s’assurer que les services privés ne puissent pas être noyautés. Le danger découlant du fait que ce genre de structure d’information peut perdre des connaissances précieuses à la suite de démissions de collaborateurs a déjà été relevé.
Le problème posé par les groupes endoctrinants réside avant tout dans le fait que ces derniers s’attaquent au libre-arbitre des personnes concernées. C’est donc pour cette raison que l’une des contre-mesures à disposition consiste à soutenir la propagation d’informations critiques au sujet des groupes endoctrinants. Ainsi, les personnes intéressées ont la possibilité (théoriquement tout au moins) d’obtenir des informations en complément à celles fournies par les groupes endoctrinants eux-mêmes et peuvent (toujours théoriquement) se forger leur propre opinion. Même les adeptes d’un groupe endoctrinant, qui souffrent souvent de leur situation, sont en mesure de mieux comprendre la situation et de réagir de manière plus adéquate. Dans la mesure où l’intervention de l’Etat devient nécessaire, les autorités (autorités tutélaires, fiscales, tribunaux etc.) doivent également pouvoir recourir à un service spécialisé en mesure de leur fournir des informations sur les groupes, sur leurs pratiques et sur
leurs doctrines.39
Même si un tel service doit s’efforcer au maximum de rester objectif, il ne faut pas s’imaginer qu’il est possible de fournir des informations exclusivement objectives ou neutres. Dans le cadre de la réflexion et du débat public indispensables sur la problématique des groupes endoctrinants, ce service présentera donc un « avis ». Pour cette raison, il est important que les critères appliqués correspondent aux valeurs protégées par la loi c’est à dire aux droits fondamentaux indissociables de l’image de l’homme et de la société dans laquelle il vit. En outre, les critères appliqués doivent être déclarés ouvertement.
Il convient de prêter attention aux points ci-dessous lors de la mise sur pied d’un service d’information et de consultation.40
- 38 Le Département fédéral de justice et police estime à ce sujet que la base légale nécessaire fait défaut.
39 Un tel service pourrait également exercer une fonction dans le cadre de la discussion relative à l’ouverture des programmes de la télévision à des organisateurs d’émissions religieuses. En effet, il n’est que difficilement concevable que le respect des critères de concession soit évalué par l’autorité concédante. A ce sujet, voir « Religiöse Fernsehveranstalter », rapport final de la Commission d’experts.
40 La commission d’enquête du Bundestag allemand a également recommandé la mise sur pied d’une « Stiftung im Bereich Neue religiöse und ideologische Gemeinschaften und Psychogruppen », rapport final de cette commission d’enquête, pp. 363 et ss.47
Ce service doit recouvrir tout le territoire suisse
A ce jour, il n’existe aucune institution se préoccupant de ce problème qui recouvre l’intégralité du territoire suisse. Il est cependant évident qu’il concerne toutes les régions linguistiques, si bien que la mise sur pied d’institutions régionales entraînerait trop de recoupements et l’engagement des moyens nécessaires ne serait pas rentable. La mise sur pied de ce service nécessite la collaboration avec les cantons.
Orientation idéelle du service
Dans la mesure où il est question d’une participation ou d’un soutien de l’Etat, il est impératif que le service suisse d’information et de consultation soit neutre du point de vue confessionnel, ceci afin d’assurer que le soutien des pouvoirs publics n’entre pas en conflit avec la neutralité de l’Etat en matière confessionnelle.41 Information et consultation doivent être assurées selon le point de vue de la population avec le but de permettre une discussion engagée mais objective sur les groupes endoctrinants, leurs méthodes et les dangers qu’ils présentent. Les activités doivent se conformer aux lois en vigueur en garantissant les droits constitutionnels, pas uniquement les droits des groupes critiqués et de leurs adeptes, mais également ceux des autres personnes concernées.42
Tâches du service
Outre l’exécution des tâches permettant de répondre aux besoins en matière d’information et de consultation, ce service doit également accomplir un travail de prévention, observer comment ces groupes et leurs activités évoluent, coordo