CESNUR - center for studies on new religions

Aum Shinri-kyo and Related Controversies

1. Killing Fields: Lifton, Brainwashing, and Aum Shinri-kyo

A Review of Robert Jay Lifton's "Destroying the World to Save It: Aum Shinrikyo, Apocalyptic Violence and the New Global Terrorism" (Metropolitan Books Henry Holt and Company, New York 1999) by Massimo Introvigne

2. Related Relevant Articles

"Aum's Nakagawa appeals death penalty ruling" ("Japan Today," November 5, 2003)

"Aum head's silence may seal fate" ("Yomiuri Shimbun," November 1, 2003)

"Last plea for doomsday cult guru" (Reuters, October 30, 2003)

"Was asylum seeker once a member of Aum cult?" ("Japan Times," October 30, 2003)

"Japanese doomsday cult doctor to hang" (AP, October 29, 2003)

"Japan doomsday cult member sentenced to death" (Reuters, October 28, 2003)

“Life imprisonment for Aum member upheld” (“Kyodo News,” October 16, 2003)

“Life sentence for sarin attack upheld for Aum member” (“The Japan Times,” September 26, 2003)

“Japanese court upholds death sentence for Aum cult 'combatant'” (AFP, September 18, 2003)

“Arrested Cultists Followers of Aum Doomsday Leader” (“Mainichi,” September 10, 2003)

"Lawyers for two Aum members call for overturn of death penalty" ("Japan Today," July 16, 2003)

"Protesters call for Aum members' eviction" by Eric Johnston ("The Japan Times," July 15, 2003)

"Prosecutors call for ex-AUM senior member Tsuchiya to hang" ("Mainichi," July 14, 2003)

"Japan Court to Rule on Doomsday Cult Guru in Feb" (Reuters, July 4, 2003)

"Takayama city ordered to compensate Aum members" ("Japan Today," July 2, 2003)

"Cult wins residency battle" ("Mainichi," June 26, 2003)

"Aum members held over swindle" ("The Japan Times," June 24, 2003)

"Death row cult member marries, police suspicious" ("Mainichi Daily," June 7, 2003)

"Court upholds death for Japan subway terrorist" ("Mainichi," May 19, 2003)

"Japanese Police Raid Doomsday Cult Premises" (Reuters, May 14, 2003)

"AUM senior member apologizes at conclusion of trial" ("Mainichi," May 12, 2003)

"Aum trial points to system flaws" by Yoichiro Osawa and Akihiro Ishihara ("Yomiuri Shimbun," April 26, 2003)

"Aum Shinrikyo plagued by guru's whims, journalist says" by Yumi Wijers-Hasegawa ("The Japan Times," April 25, 2003)

"Aum facilities rocking social boat" ("Yomiuri Shimbun," April 24, 2003)

"Aum flailing amid vacuum left by Asahara" by Hiroshi Matsubara ("The Japan Times," April 23, 2003)

"Cult leader faces death penalty call over sarin attack" by Colin Joyce ("The Telegraph," April 20, 2003)

"Doomsday Guru's Lawyer Seeking Acquittal" by Mari Yamaguchi (AP, April 22, 2003)

"Don't let up on Aum Shinrikyo: justice minister" ("The Japan Times," April 12, 2003)

"AUM remains lethal threat to society" ("Mainichi," April 11, 2003)

"Aum's Asahara silent during final questioning" ("Japan Today," April 10, 2003)

"Gas attack victims demand death for Asahara" ("Mainichi," April 10, 2003)

"Aum cult man flies to Moscow" ("South Africa News24.com," April 10, 2003)

"Asahara again refuses to respond to questions by his own attorneys" by Yumi Wijers-Hasegawa ("The Japan Times," March 28, 2003)

"Relatives of Aum crime victims want guru to hang" ("AFP," March 27, 2003)

"Subway workers offer prayers on sarin attack anniversary" ("The Japan Times," March 21, 2003)

"Asahara Maintains His Silence" by Yumi Wijers-Hasegawa ("Japan Times," March 14, 2003)

"Noose tightens for Aum's Matsumoto" ("The Asahi Shimbun," March 3, 2003)

"Asahara trial nears sentencing as defense questioning ends" ("Mainichi," March 1, 2003)

"Asahara trial's closing arguments may come in April" ("The Japan Times," February 27, 2003)

"Japanese cult used Colorado vaccine" by Diedtra Henderson ("Denver Post," February 17, 2003)

"Kazakh authorities arrest leader of local Aum Shinri Kyo terror sect" (AP, February 12, 2003)

"Aum must prove itself 'harmless'" ("The Japan Times," February 8, 2003)

"Convicted Aum figure's appeal nixed" ("The Japan Times," February 7, 2003)

"Aum figure pleads not guilty after long silence" ("The Japan Times," February 4, 2003)

"AUM uses sultry Net sirens to lure male members" ("Mainichi," January 29, 2003)

"Cultists compensated" ("The Daily Yomiuri," January 29, 2003)

"Death demanded for Aum 'doctor'" by Yomiuri Shimbun ("The Daily Yomiuri," January 29, 2003)

"Authorities extend doomsday cult surveillance for three more years" (AP, January 23, 2003)

"Surveillance of Aum to continue on grounds it still poses threat to public" ("The Japan Times," January 19, 2003)

3. Alternative Views

"Japan's Imperial-Era Society: From the Anti-AUM Movement to the Elimination of all Heterodoxies"
a report by Kenichi Asano (Professor of Journalism, Doshisha University)

"The "De-nationalization" of AUM Followers: Its Hidden Political Purpose"
("Tsukuru", November 1999) 
by Masaaki Fukuda (Professor of Law, Hitotsubashi University)

Aum's Own Website: http://info.aleph.to

2002 UPDATES
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1999 - UPDATES
CESNUR reproduces or quotes documents from the media and different sources on a number of religious issues. Unless otherwise indicated, the opinions expressed are those of the document's author(s), not of CESNUR or its directors

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