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In February 2005 he published an apology to Prem Rawat and to people
worldwide who appreciate Mr Rawat's message of peace. Two months later
John followed this with an affidavit
which exposes the Hate Group from the inside. I was pleased to hear (July
2005) that a judicial matter has been resolved, and that John is now able
to return to Australia if he so wishes. the webmaster
In reference to his own articles John states:
"Because of my skills as a writer,
and my media connections, I was supported by the Group to publish
articles that furthered the goals of defaming Rawat and his students,
annoying his students, dissuading persons from learning more
about Knowledge, and to use whatever means I could to use the
media to publish articles with that goal.
Based on no factual evidence, I arranged
to publish in two Australian print media publications articles
that Rawat and / or the volunteer entities were cult-like or
involved in illegal or immoral activities. These implications
are absolutely false and unfounded.
I found that the more vitriolic and
defamatory my writings about Rawat were, the more support and
comfort I received from the Ex-premie Group. Because I craved
this attention and validation, I sought to have published further
similar articles."
About members of the Ex-premie Group and their propaganda
web sites, John states:
"In retrospect, I am of the opinion
that many of these persons are irrational, obsessed, and motivated
by ill-directed anger. I have reviewed the statements about Rawat,
his students, the volunteer entities posted on the Ex-premie
Group's web sites and find that when they purport to report on
factual matters, they are frequently false and defamatory, unsupported
by factual bases, and motivated in many instances by hatred,
ill will and spite."
John's 2002 tabloid article relied heavily on hearsay and
defamatory material from the Ex-premie website. During 2003/4,
while John was being sued by Elan Vital Australia (an organization
supporting Mr Rawat's work) he was interviewed by tabloid and
radio journalists. During those interviews he made various allegations
of impropriety resulting in further adverse media reports. John
states:
"During the course of 2003/2004,
I made allegations of impropriety against the claimants and their
legal advisers. These allegations were the product of my overwrought
state and they were wrong. These stories were designed to paint
the Claimants as a dangerous, shadowy cult abusing the litigation
process to silence criticism. I understand and acknowledge that
the litigation was not directed towards silencing criticism,
but instead Claimants were appropriately protecting themselves
against the activities of an antagonistic group as would any
other business people in the circumstances."
In his affidavit, he adds:
"In the course of my involvement
with the Ex-premie Group, I filed several complaints to various
tax and regulatory bodies around the world, hoping to initiate
expensive and burdensome investigation of Rawat and related volunteer
entities. I acknowledge and admit that I had no factual basis
upon which to make such allegations, and that the complaints
I filed were supported by unauthenticated, incomplete or out-of-context
documents designed to paint a sinister picture.
Since the litigation I have had the
chance to reflect upon the activities of the Ex-premie Group,
my involvement with them, and their motivations. I have come
to realize that my involvement was misguided, and that I have
to accept personal responsibility for my own life choices and
actions."
John's affidavit concludes with the following statement:
"I believe that I owe Prem Rawat,
the claimants, their legal advisers and all of Rawat's students
an apology for my actions, and for allowing myself to be used
by the Ex-premie Group. I believe that persons have the right
to choose their own path of spiritual discovery, and the right
to leave a chosen path, but that people do not have the right
to incite hatred and interfere with others' choices."
John's courage and honesty is hugely appreciated. I have no
doubt that he will be warmly welcomed by his old friends and
associates if he decides to return to Australia.
To download a PDF copy of John Macgregor's affidavit, click here.
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