A peculiar instance of 'human values in action'
Mr Meyer wrote to me that Sai Educare, "is a
non-profit foundation outside the Sathya Sai Organisation devoted to spirituality and
universal human values". However, it still bears the name ‘Sai’. Sai
devotees such as Mr. Meyer and his associates are the only people who organise the Educare
programme. They all reject out of hand all the great weight of evidence by dozens of
reliable people and many depositions sworn under oath of worse sexual molestation by SB
(people who evidently would not want to confide personally in fanatical devotees and
morally unprincipled deniers and attackers like Meyer, Pruzan, Piculell etc. of
victims’ reputations.
On the strength of around $6 million, the Educare
foundation was about to start a High School for youth at Arresdøl Castle, near
Copenhagen. The project was made impossible by the healthy reaction of the local Danish
public, causing the Educare leaders to withdraw from the contract of buying this
prestigious castle and to shelve their plans for a college (until they find some other
unsuspecting country in Europe). Despite the great showdown in Denmark, they later claimed
it was Sai Baba who had decided against it!
In spring 2002, national Danish TV showed the
critical exposé film 'Seduced' about Sai Baba, which included very convincing interviews
with victims of Sai Baba's various molestations (including oral sex and attempted anal
rape). Mr. Meyer refuted the claims of two victims of major sexual abuse by Sai Baba who
gave accounts of their experiences. A young man who had been 16 years old at the time
described most credibly Sai Baba's attempt at pederasty and his having to give oral sex
under extremely powerful duress. A mature Swedish ex-follower also told of being forced
into the oral sex relationship by Sai Baba and explained the circumstances of this and his
disaffection in a convincingly natural and frank way. When asked about this and other
claims, Mr. Meyer repeatedly insisted (like a mantra to ward off evil) that it was all
'undocumented'. As if statements made by courageous victims speaking up in the face of his
own previous accusations of homosexuality etc. on film were not of any 'documentary'
status. Since Sai Baba counts the Indian High Chief Justice Bhagwati, hundreds of high and
circuit court judges plus the right-wing Hindu PM of India,Vajpayee, and many such among
his followers, the victims have been unable so far to get the courts to accept their plea
or examine the evidence! Mr. Meyer was pressed to agree to investigate the allegations by
a TV journalist, which he agreed to do but has not done more than most perfunctorily, as
his subsequent mail to me made very explicit. Incidentally, the 20 signed affidavits by
victims, which most certainly do exist, were not made available to him as such, not least
since merely seeing the signatures would make no difference to Mr. Meyer, who already knew
a majority of the accounts involved. The security of certain the victims and their
addresses etc. from libel and other actions is protected in such ways until they are to be
presented in an Indian court again when the political climate may allow.