Church of Scientology accused of holding woman hostage, denies claims
2:30 PM 02/27/2013
The church of Scientology in Sydney is facing hostage-holding accusations after a young Taiwanese woman was hospitalized when she punched through a window at the church in order to, as she initially claimed, escape the church’s headquarters in Dundas, Australia.
The incident occurred in March of 2012 after Alice Wu expressed a desire to leave the church’s Sea Organization headquarters. Wu had signed a billion-year contract with the church in 2011, vowing to join this “elite” branch of the church, ABC News reported Tuesday.
The Sea Org is the “singularly most dedicated” branch of the religious group, according to Scientology.org.
Following her request to leave, she suffered a mental breakdown and was put into isolation, according to Wu’s cousin, Teresa Wu. “She was still offered food but was locked in a room. It is an isolation room in the Sea Organization,” Teresa Wu told ABC.
The church’s lawyer Stuart Gibson denied the allegations claiming she was actually in a “sick bay.”
A statement released by the Church of Scientology said Alice Wu had the flu and was “somewhat delusory” when she cut her hand. The statement also states that a staff member called the hospital as soon as she was hurt.
However, Teresa Wu believes Alice smashed the window because she wanted to leave, she told ABC.
Alice’s medical records revealed that she told hospital staff that Scientology members were holding her hostage, when she arrived at the hospital for treatment. She was later diagnosed with a mental illness.
Isolation is used as part of a procedure to deal with mental breakdowns in the Scientology religion, since the religion is against psychiatric treatment. The lawyer Gibson called the term “isolation” a “derogatory term” and told ABC, “There is no isolation and there’s never been isolation.”
Alice’s brother, Jack Wu, said he contacted a former president of the Church of Scientology in Taiwan, Mei Tsu Lee, to inquire about the situation with his sister. In the recorded conversation ABC obtained, Lee reportedly admitted, “I was with her in the isolation room after she became unstable.”
Alice recently sent an email to ABC’s managing director, Mark Scott, denying allegations of being held hostage or being treated badly by the Church of Scientology.
Teresa Wu said two scientologists took Alice to a notary office to sign the statement that was sent to Scott. Alice’s father claims the document should be annulled because Alice was not in a “good state of mind” when the document was signed.
Despite accusations and claims from Alice’s family members, the Australian Federal Police have not found sufficient evidence to pursue an investigation of breaches to the Migration Act or people trafficking, ABC reported.
Read more: http://dailycaller.com/2013/02/27/church-of-scientology-accused-of-holding-woman-hostage-denies-claims/#ixzz2M9iz9Xda
'THE MASTER' BLU-RAY REVIEW: SCIENTOLOGY-THEMED DRAMA DELIVERS WITH LOWERED EXPECTATIONS
Director Paul Thomas Anderson's The Master arrived in theaters with enough Oscar buzz to rock Nigel Tufnel's amplifier.
Audiences mostly rejected the filmmaker's inscrutable story of a lost soul and the Scientology-style mentor who tries to make him whole. Oscar voters did the same Sunday night, althoughThe Master's Philip Seymour Hoffman deserved to take home his second gold statuette.
The film, available this week on Blu-ray and DVD, works better on the small screen despite its lush visual presentation. The expectations are hushed, the performances more intimate, but Anderson's third act still prevents us from thoroughly embracing his mercurial vision of postwar America.
Joaquin Phoenix is Freddie Quell, a World War II veteran with an appetite for homemade booze and women. He's a wreck, but he's thrown a life preserver when he meets Lancaster Dodd (Hoffman) aboard a yacht.
Dodd, known to his followers as The Master, is the man responsible for a Scientology-like movement called The Cause. Dodd takes Freddie in, presumably as a guinea pig for the healing powers of his "process," but Freddie's hunger for trouble isn't easily slaked.
Hoffman is so very good as the film's Master you wish Anderson shed more light on him and his ultimate goals. Is he a genius, a fool, a scoundrel or a sham? The writer/director's slippery approach can still work if the film tugged at our emotions or simply made us care about the curious Master/Freddie bond.
We don't, and that's the biggest reason why Oscar voters simply couldn't honor the film as many expected they would.
Phoenix is mesmerizing in both repose and in frequent bouts of rage, but his performance feels like muscle memory, not that of an actor withdrawing into a role. Far better is Amy Adams as Dodd's loyal wife, a woman willing to stand by her man and kick Freddie aside if that will help The Cause.
The Blu-ray extras fuse the traditional (a nicely packaged combination of outtakes and additional scenes) with the downright puzzling (an hour documentary on WWII veterans from filmmaking legend John Huston which purportedly inspired the creation of Freddie Quell). We're also treated to a, "so raw it's ridiculous" behind-the-scenes segment which ends on a humorous note. We watch Hoffman, Adams and several others in the cast dissolve into laughter while jammed in an elevator.
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