I have received an email from CESNUR telling me that a complaint has been filed with the Turin City Prosecutor against the recipient of the letter reproduced on the Internet by "Comments from the Friends":

and by the Apologetics Index (my site):

In that letter CESNUR's Massimo Introvigne explains that while all of the Jehovah's Witnesses who did not participate in CESNUR's recent conference had sent messages stating they could not come for private reasons, "lawyers knowledgable with their matters" told him the Watchtower headquarters were concerned because of information made public by "Comments From The Friends." The recipient sent a copy of the letter to "Comments From The Friends."

CESNUR's email to me states that in Italy there is no "fair use doctrine protecting unauthorized reproduction of private correspondence." Mr. Introvigne considers this a "copyright violation," and says both instances are criminal felonies under Italian law. He added "My lawyers will be happy to add your name to the case." This, he writes, will be done without further notice if the letter is still on my web site by the end of the business day, December 23rd (Wednesday).

My legal contacts in Holland all consider this an interesting case. Some think CESNUR is doing itself a disservice, and several point out that real or implied threats to remove a web page tend to backfire in the form of mirrored pages, negative publicity and closer scrutiny.

I, for one, would like to know whether, as Mr. Introvigne says, all of the Jehovah's Witnesses cancelled their participation in the CESNUR 1998 conference for

If the latter, who are the "lawyers knowledgable with their matters" Mr. Introvigne refers to?

Did - as CESNUR representative and lawyher Michael Homer writes - CFTF try to intimidate the Jehovah's Witnesses by publicising their involvement in the conference? Did, as he claims, CESNUR, its directors and its officers suffer damages? If so, how?

CESNUR should understand this: as long as it, its directors, and its officers act as pro-cult apologists, there will be no end of people and organizations ready of expose it to daylight.

Legal professionals will advise me on a course of action by tomorrow afternoon (December 23). Meanwhile, the page in question

will remain online at least until the close of business - 6:00 PM CET - Wednesday, December 23rd, 1998 (CESNUR's deadline).

See also:

For more about CESNUR, see:

For more about Cult Apologists, see

Anton Hein