PRESS RELEASES
Church of Scientology Activities
UNITED STATES •
Scientologist John Radich competes in marathons and ultramarathons in partnership with The Way to Happiness Foundation. The Way to Happiness, a nonreligious moral code based entirely on common sense, was written by author, humanitarian and Scientology Founder L. Ron Hubbard. The Church of Scientology supports distribution of The Way to Happiness in communities around the world.
UKRAINE •
Erosion of human rights in Ukraine cited by human rights watchdog groups has prompted members of Church of Scientology Mission of Kiev to step up their human rights education activities and awareness-raising initiative.
A team of Ukrainian Scientologists have taken on promoting and seeing that human rights is widely taught in their country.
CAMEROON, AFRICA •
The African Human Rights Leadership Campaign, under the banner of Youth for Human Rights, launches in Cameroon to provide young African men and women the training and experience to create and sustain a just and prosperous society.
ATHENS, GREECE •
With uncertainty from the financial crisis affecting families across the country, The Way to Happiness, a commonsense guide to better living, by author, humanitarian and Scientology Founder L. Ron Hubbard, is providing hope and direction to the people of Greece.
Austerity measures undertaken to salvage the Greek economy have brought hardship to citizens throughout the country. Protests and strikes rock the nation, unemployment has risen to a staggering 26.8 percent, 77.4 percent among those 20-24, and tens of thousands are homeless.
LONDON, ENGLAND •
Is the UK sinking into moral decline? The Church of Scientology of London rallied London community leaders to discuss the issue and introduce them to The Way to Happiness—a tool to reverse the trend.
Community, civic and religious leaders gathered at the Church of Scientology of London for a conference titled, “Is the UK sinking into moral decline?”
President of the Church of Scientology London Mark Pinchin opened the conference by asking attendees to define for themselves what morals are and what they would consider a moral decline to be.
KAOHSIUNG,TAIWAN •
Elementary school teachers in Kaohsiung attended a seminar based on The Way to Happiness, a nonreligious moral code based entirely on common sense, written by author, humanitarian and Scientology Founder L. Ron Hubbard.
ECUADOR •
Injecting tolerance and compassion into Ecuadorian society with the human rights initiative supported by the Church of Scientology.
Over the past three years, hundreds of thousands of Ecuadorian students have learned the basic principles enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights through a human rights education programs supported by the Church of Scientology.
JUAREZ, MEXICO •
Juarez, Mexico, was known as the murder capital of the world. But the homicide rate has declined by 45 percent since the broad distribution of The Way to Happiness, a booklet featured in a new brochure published by the Church of Scientology.
Twenty-year-old Juan Carlos Martinez looked out across the Mexican border city of Ciudad Juarez and wondered what had happened to the place where he was raised.
ROME, ITALY •
The Church of Scientology of Rome and Association for Human Rights and Tolerance of Italy co-hosted a human rights conference and open house May 30, 2013, that spotlighted plight for the people of Tibet.
Tibetan exile and human rights advocate Mr. Gelek Yakar, president of the Mandala Project Center, was the special guest speaker at a human rights conference and open house May 30, 2013, at the Church of Scientology of Rome.
CARACAS, VENEZUELA •
Venezuela educators gained valuable tools to help their students at the first The Way to Happiness Educators’ Convention in Caracas.
More than 400 educators participated in the first The Way to Happiness Educators’ Convention at Santa Maria University in Caracas, Venezuela, June 1, 2013, where they learned to conduct character education classes based on The Way to Happiness.
MILAN, ITALY •
The Venerable Tenzin Bagdro, Tibetan monk and champion of Tibetan independence, was recognized with an Association for Human Rights and Tolerance Italy Human Rights Hero Award at a conference hosted by the Church of Scientology of Milan.
The Association for Human Rights and Tolerance of Italy held a human rights conference and awards ceremony May 24, 2103, to honor the Venerable Tenzin Bagdro, Tibetan monk and champion of Tibetan independence.
LONDON •
The Church of Scientology of London held a drug education and prevention forum to tackle the epidemic of drug abuse.
Representatives from law enforcement, community groups and NGOs gathered in the Chapel of the Church of Scientology of London on May 29 to discuss, coordinate and plan actions to tackle the epidemic of drug abuse.
NEPAL •
Youth for Human Rights, a program supported by the Church of Scientology, is bringing human rights awareness to Nepal.
Motivated by the May 2012 findings of the U.S. State Department Human Rights Report, over the past year Youth for Human Rights Nepal has introduced human rights education to Nepalese security forces.
The State Department report stated the country’s “most significant human rights problem were abuses committed by the security forces (including members of the Nepal Army, Nepal Police, and Armed Police Force).”
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA •
A nonreligious moral code that helps prisoners take stock of their lives is the subject of a new brochure published by the Church of Scientology.
The average cost of incarcerating one inmate in the United States in 2010 was $31,286. In a study conducted in 40 American states and published by the Center on Sentencing and Corrections, the cost to taxpayers was $39 billion annually.
TEL AVIV, ISRAEL •
More than 100 youth attended human rights lectures at the Scientology Center of Tel Aviv.
More than 100 teens from the city of Ramla learned of the 30 rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights through seminars provided by the Public Affairs Department of the Scientology Center of Tel Aviv.
UNITED KINGDOM •
The Marathon for a Drug-Free UK completed a grueling 26-day, 965 km (600 mile) race from the tip of England to Edinburgh, Scotland, to promote drug-free living in the United Kingdom.
A team of runners spent the better part of May 2013 on a 965 km (600 mile) run to promote drug-free living—the Marathon for a Drug-Free UK.
The initiative was held under the banner of the Truth About Drugs, a program supported by the Church of Scientology that raises awareness of drugs and their effects.
VENEZUELA •
Venezuela violent crime rate prompts massive distribution of The Way to Happiness funded by donations from Scientologists around the world.
TIBET •
New brochure, Scientology: How We Help—United for Human Rights, Making Human Rights a Global Reality, released at a conference honoring Tibetan monk the Venerable Tenzin Bagdro, a Tibetal monk and champion of Tibet independence.
CLEARWATER, FLORIDA •
Deserving Tampa Bay area volunteers were presented with the President’s Volunteer Service Awards at the National Volunteer Week celebration at the Fort Harrison religious retreat of the Church of Scientology Flag Service Organization.
In celebration of National Volunteer Week, Tampa Bay volunteers were recognized April 24 at the Fort Harrison religious retreat of the Church of Scientology Flag Service Organization.
PASADENA, CA •
Pasadena leaders at the Truth About Drugs Prevention Forum at the Church of Scientology of Pasadena April 20 joined forces in fight against drug epidemic.
More than 80 civic, community and religious leaders representing over a dozen groups and associations attended a Truth About Drugs Prevention Forum April 20 at the Church of Scientology of Pasadena. The purpose: to tackle rising teen drug abuse in the Pasadena area.