Subject: Jehovah's Witnesses and the United Nations


Dear Sir,

In response to two articles by Stephen Bates, religious affairs correspondent for The Guardian, I should be grateful to have the attached letter published.

sincerely,

Paul Gillies
Press Officer for Jehovah's Witnesses in Britain

October 22, 2001
Letters Editor
The Guardian
e-mail: letters@guardian.co.uk

Dear Sir,

Stephen Bates' articles in The Guardian of October 8 and 15 substantially misrepresents the background to Jehovah’s Witnesses registration with the United Nations and contains a number of factual errors.

In 1991 one of our legal corporations registered with the United Nations as a NGO (non-governmental organization) for the sole purpose of getting access to the extensive library of the United Nations. This enabled a writer who received an identification card, to enter their library for research purposes and to obtain information that has been used in writing articles in our journals about the United Nations. There was nothing secret about it.
At the time of the initial application no signature was required on the form. Years later, unbe-known to the Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses, the United Nations published “Criteria for Association,” stipulating that affiliated NGO’s are required to support the goals of the United Nations.
After learning of the situation, our membership as NGO was withdrawn and the ID card of the writer was returned.

Sincerely,

Paul Gillies
Press Officer for Jehovah’s Witnesses in Britain


P.S. Please do not publish my e-mail address.

Answer from Stephen Bates:
Dear Mr Gillies,

I have just been shown your letter, submitted for publication two weeks after my initial article appeared in the Guardian.

I would be very grateful if you would allow me to circulate it to the thousands of Jehovah's Witnesses who have contacted me since the articles appeared because, if there was nothing secret about your association with the Scarlet-Coloured Beast, I am surprised that so many followers did not know of it, given the WTBTS's frequent condemnation of the UN in its publications.

This may account for the witnesses' feelings of betrayal and sense of hypocrisy over the whole affair. If it was not secret and was only done to obtain a library ticket,. why did you not tell me when I spoke to you several days before the article appeared? Surely you would have known it or could have found out very easily - most press officers are able to do so.

And why did the WTBTS decide to disaffiliate only two days after the article appeared, when the WTBTS "learned about a situation" which was anyway not secret? Any organisation which affiliates to another surely must know that it has to ascribe to its basic principles, so to pretend that acceptance of the UN charter's aims has been suddenly sprung on you is being disengenuous at best.

As far as I can tell from your letter there are no factual inaccuracies in my reports for you have not pointed to any that you did not have the opportunity to explain to me when we spoke. I don't think the letter will be published. But then what would I know - I'm only bird seed in your demonology!

Best wishes,

Stephen Bates