False or misleading information about individual citizens and organisations held in inaccessible government files have routinely caused agencies to make wrong or unfair decisions. “A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on,” Winston Churchill observed. Because churches of Scientology and their members have had to deal with the consequences of such erroneous information being used by government agencies without verification — and even being disseminated across international borders — the Church has for more than three decades worked to bring about freedom of information laws in countries ranging from Canada to Germany to France, from Singapore to Australia to New Zealand.

The Church first used Freedom of Information legislation in the United States, where, in the 1970s, it established itself as a leader in the promotion and utilisation of the law to protect not just the rights of Scientologists, but those of all citizens. The U.S. Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) was enacted in 1966, a few years before similar legislation would appear in Europe, but there was no effective means to enforce compliance with America’s FOIA until the coverage of the Act was significantly extended in 1974.

During those years — a time of social turbulence and political paranoia in America — Scientologists pioneered the use of the Freedom of Information Act, creating a body of jurisprudence through many successful legal challenges. These precedents include placing the burden on the government to prove documents are exempt from the FOIA and establishing that a government agency has an obligation to specify which documents are being withheld and on what grounds. In the interest of transparency of government, Scientology churches also published materials and held conferences to educate people from all walks of life regarding their rights and how to use them.

In May 1991, in a case against the Internal Revenue Service, a United States Federal Court credited the Church for helping bring about significant reform. “Furthermore,” the court stated, “communications between the IRS and the Church indicate that this litigation contributed to the IRS’ decision to review its procedures and that resulting improvements in these procedures will enable better handling of over 1,000 cases involving identical legal issues.”

These precedents are not just about one religion; they are about the future of democracy. Each step forward helps to ensure the rights of countless groups and millions of individuals. Acknowledging these efforts, Quinlan J. Shea Jr., Director of the U.S. Justice Department’s Office of Privacy and Information Appeals under Presidents Ford and Carter, credited the Church of Scientology, along with the American Civil Liberties Union and the Society of Professional Journalists, for having “endeavoured to shine more light on government. They — and others — have issued publications on how to use the FOIA, have litigated in the courts and have testified before numerous congressional hearings calling for greater openness.”