1979 The Cult Phenomenon In The United States - Robert Boettcher

The Cult Phenomenon in the United States (1979) ("Statement of Bob Boettcher.") Joint-Congressional Proceedings, statements by Robert Boettcher INFORMATION MEETING ON THE CULT PHENOMENON IN THE UNITED STATES, February 5, 1979, 318 Russell Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C. P.30-35. of Transcript of Proceedings. Senator Dole. It might be helpful -- Bob Boettcher, would you identify yourself in your statement as far as background? Mr. Boettcher. Yes, sir. STATEMENT OF BOB BOETTCHER. Senator Dole. I have a brief description of each witness, btu as long as everybody understands what your role has been, then we have a better understanding fo what you say. Mr. Boettcher. I was the staff director for the Fraser Subcommittee which conducted the investigation in Korean-American relations. I will try to keep my remarks brief and to the point. I know there are many to hear from this morning. The Founding Fathers of this country prized worship of a supreme being so highly they listed it first in the Bill of Rights. 200 years later Americans still cherish that right as inviolable. The Attorney General of the United States has made a point of his commitment to protect. Currently, we are witnessing a perversion of freedom of religion by leaders of cults who think they have special license to violate laws. My own experience with cult activities is from the investigation of KoreanAmerican relations in the House of Representatives, investigations chaired by Congressman Donald Fraser, whose house was set on fire last September, and among the members of the subcommittee was Congressman Leo Ryan, who was killed last November. We considered allegations that organizations affiliated with Sun Myung Moon had operational ties with the Korean Central Intelligence Agency. The Fraser Subcommittee was astonished by what it found. There are not several separate Moon organizations; there is one unified, multifaceted organization run by Moon. His best known group is the Unification Church, although he has hundreds of fronts. His stated goal, quite simply, is to rule the world by setting up a global theocracy in which separation between church and state will be abolished. Though that notion is a far-fetched absurdity to reasonable people, Moon has managed to recruit an army of brainwashed, obedient servants, and to amass a fortune, many millions of dollars. Americans should ask their Attorney General some questions about freedom of religion in the Moon organization. Does freedom of religion give Moon the right to violate teh 13th Amendment to the Constitution, which outlaws involuntary servitude?

Hundreds former members of his cult have declared they never acted out of their own free will while under Moon's control. Does freedom of religion give Moon the right to be paid secretly by the Korean CIA in September of 1974 to carry out a plot to throw eggs at the Japanese Ambassador and disrupt an official visit by the Prime Minister of Japan? Does freedom of religion give Moon the right to smuggle millions of dollars into the United States? Did freedom of religion give Moon the right to try to take over an American bank in 1975 by buying half the bank's stock secretly with cult money? Did freedom of religion give Moon the right to smuggle hundreds of aliens into this country under the guise of students for religious training, so he could put them to work full time in his business enterprises? Does freedom of religion give Moon the right to make his brain-washed servants solicit money in the streets by lying about what the money is to be used for? Did freedom of religion give Moon and his minion in Washington, Bo Hi Pak, the right to dupe Americans into donating hundreds of thousands of dollars to Radio Free Asia, a Moon front which used free Korean government broadcast facilities under control of the Korean CIA? Did freedom of religion give Moon's minion, Bo Hi Pak, the right to collect millions of dollars from Americans under the guise of a children's relief fund and then use 93 percent of the money to pay public relations men? Did freedom of religion give Moon and his cult the right to negotiate an unregistered agent of the Korean government for manufacture and export of M-16 rifles? Americans should ask their Senators and Congressman: Does freedom of religion give Moon the right to infiltrate your office staffs with covert agents who report details of yuor personal lives to the cult for its special card file? Did freedom of religion give Moon the right to refuse to answer questions about these activities before a subcommittee of Congress? Apparently even Moon had doubts about that, because he fled the United States to avoid a subpoena. To say these activities are protected by the First Amendment would be a travesty. They are activities of a thoroughly antidemocratic, brain-washed political party. They are activities of a huge, greedy business conglomerate. As of now, Moon's business empire includes military weapons, newspapers, banking, tea, chemicals, candles, vases, valets, candy, fishing, movies, shipbuilding, sound recording, food processing, travel agencies, and large real estate holdings. Moon is a menace. We must not allow him and other cult leaders like him to pervert freedom of religion for their own lust for power. We are entitled to action by our Attorney General to protect our rights. Thank you.

[Applause.] Senator Dole. Let me just caution the audience. As I indicated before the group just came in, or some of the groups, we are under time constraints. We would appreciate it if we would save our applause until everyone leaves. [Laughter.]