Mona Vasquez

Mona Vasquez
Born	1960 France
Occupation	French author, cult expert
Children	1
Website
Mona Vasquez homepage

Mona Vasquez was a Scientologist in the 1980s and active in Scientology's headquarters in Europe, in Copenhagen. She went on a hunger strike in August 1989 at Scientology's offices in Paris when she wanted to quit the program, in order to get her money back. She did receive almost €60,000 back from Scientology.

Experiences with Scientology

Vasquez says she was initially introduced to Scientology by reading a friend's books.^[1] There, she says, she become part of an organisation under "tight control... from the mother church".^[2] She says she attempted to leave three times in this period, always coming back.^[3] After being convicted of making illegal loans, which she argued had been encouraged by Scientology, she was set free from jail on the condition that she not attempt to contact members of the Scientology organisation.^[4] She finally rejected Scientology. With money tight, she sought the return of money she had paid to Scientology for books and training courses. After a ten day hunger strike in Paris in August 1989 covered by Antenne 2, the Scientology organization returned around ₣100,000 of her money to her.^[1]

Since then, she has testified before the Parliamentary Commission on Cults in France,^[2] and continued to paint and write.

Publications

• Satan Created the Cult: Memoirs of an escapee, La Secte: El Satan crea la secte: Memoires d'une rescapee, Mona Vasquez, March 2006
• La secte : Comment je m'en suis sortie, Mona Teulière (foreword by Jean Blum), (ISBN 978-2846590501)

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Echo Magazine, interview with Mona Vasquez, October 2004, "Scientology, a true control".
   "The first time where I was challenged by the sect, it was by a friend. I was at the end of my second year in Art school in Toulouse. I read all kinds of books and the first contact was done thus, in 1982. I saw nothing suspicious and the brainwashing started."
2. ^ ^{a b} Dahlburg, John-Thor (2000-02-29). "Report Urges Dissolution of Scientology Church in France". Los Angeles Times. http://articles.latimes.com/2000/feb/29/news/mn-3701. Retrieved 2008-10-19. 
3. ^ prison sans barreaux, scientologie, sortir d'une secte
4. ^ The prison without bars- Mona Vasquez. La Croix, 4th of June, 2004. Mirrored here.

External links

• Echo Magazine, interview with Mona Vasquez, October 2004, "Scientology, a true control"

See also

Scientology portal

• Scientology
• "Voyage au pays des nouveaux gourous"

Persondata
Name	Vasquez, Mona
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	1960
Place of birth	France
Date of death
Place of death