TO: REV. JAMES WARREN JONES<\/p>\n
From: Parents and relatives of children and adults under your control at “Jonestown”, Northwest District, Cooperative Republic of Guyana<\/p>\n
Date: April 11, 1978<\/p>\n
I. INTRODUCTION<\/p>\n
We, the undersigned, are the grief-stricken parents and relatives\u00a0of the hereinafter-designated persons you arranged to be transported\u00a0to Guyana, South America, at a jungle encamp\u00adment you call “Jonestown”.\u00a0We are advised there are no tele\u00adphones or exit roads from Jonestown,\u00a0and that you now have more than 1,000 U.S. citizens living with you\u00a0there.<\/p>\n
We have allowed nine months to pass since you left the United States\u00a0in June 1977. Although certain of us knew it would do no good to wait\u00a0before making a group protest, others of us were willing to wait to\u00a0see whether you would in fact respect the fundamental freedoms and\u00a0dignity of our children and family members in Jonestown. Sadly, your\u00a0conduct over the past year has shown such a flagrant and cruel disregard\u00a0for \u00adhuman rights that we have no choice as responsible people but\u00a0to make this public accusation and to demand the immediate elimination\u00a0of these outrageous abuses.<\/p>\n
II. SUMMARY OF VIOLATIONS<\/p>\n
We hereby accuse you, Jim Jones, of the following acts violating\u00a0the human rights of our family members:<\/p>\n
1. Making the following threat calculated to cause alarm for the\u00a0lives of our relatives: “I can say without hesitation that we are\u00a0devoted to a decision that it is better even to die than to be constantly\u00a0harrassed [harassed] from one continent to the next.”<\/p>\n
2. Employing physical intimidation and psychological coercion as\u00a0part of a mind-programming campaign aimed at destroying family\u00a0ties, discrediting belief in God, and causing contempt for the United\u00a0States of America.<\/p>\n
3. Prohibiting our relatives from leaving Guyana by confiscating\u00a0their passports and money and by stationing guards around Jonestown\u00a0to prevent anyone escaping.<\/p>\n
4. Depriving them of their right to privacy, free speech, and freedom\u00a0of association by:<\/p>\n
a.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>Prohibiting\u00a0telephone calls;<\/p>\n
b.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>Prohibiting\u00a0individual contacts with “outsiders”;<\/p>\n
c. Censoring all incoming and outgoing mail;<\/p>\n
d. Extorting silence from relatives in the U.S. by threats to stop\u00a0all communication;<\/p>\n
e. Preventing our children from seeing us when we travel to Guyana.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
The aforesaid conduct by you is a violation of the human rights of\u00a0our loved ones as guaranteed by Article 55 of the United Nations Charter,\u00a0and as defined by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (adopted\u00a0by the U. N. General Assembly on December 10, 1948). It is also a\u00a0violation of their constitutional rights as guaranteed by the Constitution\u00a0of the United States, and as guaranteed by the Constitution of the\u00a0Cooperative Republic of Guyana (adopted May 26, 1966).<\/p>\n
III. THREAT OF DECISION TO DIE<\/p>\n
On March 14, 1978 you, Jim Jones, caused to be written on Peoples\u00a0Temple stationery a letter “to all U.S. Senators and Members of Congress”\u00a0complaining of alleged “bureaucratic harassment” and ending with\u00a0this chilling threat:<\/p>\n
“[I]t is equally evident that people cannot forever be continually\u00a0harassed and beleaguered by such tactics without seeking alternatives\u00a0that have been presented. I can say without hesitation that we are\u00a0devoted to a decision that it is better even to die than to be constantly\u00a0harassed from one continent to the next.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
A copy of your letter is attached as Exhibit A.<\/p>\n
We know how exact you are in choosing your words, and there is little\u00a0doubt that this letter was dictated by you personally since it has\u00a0been your policy over the years to dictate all letters sent to governmental\u00a0officials on Temple stationery. Your letter seeks to mask, by the\u00a0use of irrelevant ideological rhetoric, its real purpose, which is\u00a0to divert the attention of U.S. Governmental agencies towards your\u00a0abuses of human rights by putting them on the defensive.<\/p>\n
The “1,000 U.S. citizens” you claim to have brought to Guyana include\u00a0our beloved relatives who are “devoted to a decision that it is better\u00a0even to die.” We frankly do not know if you have become so corrupted\u00a0by power that you would actually allow a collective “decision” to\u00a0die, or whether your letter is simply a bluff designed to deter investigations\u00a0into your practices. There is supporting evidence for our concern\u00a0in the affidavit of Yolanda [Yulanda] Crawford, attached hereto as Exhibit B,\u00a0which shows that you have publicly stated in Guyana that you would\u00a0rather have your people dead than living in the United States, and\u00a0that you have solicited people to lay down their lives for your cause.\u00a0You certainly have been successful in making us fearful as to your\u00a0intentions.<\/p>\n
We hereby give you the opportunity now to publicly repudiate our\u00a0interpretation of your threat. If you refuse to deny the apparent\u00a0meaning of your letter, we demand that you immediately answer the\u00a0following questions:<\/p>\n
1. When you refer to “a decision that it is better even to die than\u00a0to be constantly harassed”, has this “decision” already been made\u00a0or is it to be made in the future? If made, when and where? Were our\u00a0relatives\u00ad consulted? Did anybody dissent? By what moral or legal\u00a0justification could you possibly make such a decision on behalf of\u00a0minor children?<\/p>\n
2. When you say you are “devoted” to this decision, does that mean\u00a0it is irreversible? If irreversible, at what point will the alleged\u00a0“harrassment” have gotten so great as to make death “better”? Would\u00a0it be an International Human Rights Commission investigation, or an\u00a0on-premises investigation of your operations by the U. S. Government?\u00a0Who besides you will decide when that point “to die” is reached?<\/p>\n
We know your psychological coercion of the residents of Jonestown\u00a0to be so “totalitarian” that nobody there, including adults, could\u00a0possibly make such a decision to die freely and voluntarily. The evidence\u00a0is that our relatives are in fact hostages, and we hereby serve notice\u00a0that should any harm befall them, we will hold you and Peoples Temple\u00a0church responsible and will employ every legal and diplomatic resource\u00a0to bring you to justice.<\/p>\n
IV. MIND-PROGRAMMING AND INTIMIDATION<\/p>\n
The affidavit of Steven A. Katsaris, attached hereto as Exhibit C,\u00a0is a personal account of his experiences in Guyana. It reveals the\u00a0terrifying effect of your mind-programming on his daughter,\u00a0a bright 24-year old, which has caused her to deny belief in\u00a0God, to renounce family ties, and to manifest symptoms of sleep-deprivation\u00a0and a serious personality change.<\/p>\n
Yolanda Crawford’s affidavit (Exhibit B) is an eye-witness\u00a0account of your activities in Guyana by someone present with you.\u00a0The affidavit shows that you, Jim Jones, preach there the following\u00a0doctrines: a) that you are God and there is no other God, b) that\u00a0the United States is the “most evil” nation in the world, c) that\u00a0allegiance to your cause must replace family loyalty and that parents\u00a0should be handled at a distance for the sole purposes of collecting\u00a0inheritances for the cause and of getting them not to cause trouble.<\/p>\n
The evidence also shows that you have instituted the following practices\u00a0in Guyana: a) a centralized chain of command whereby all decisions\u00a0of significance are to be made by you and once made, must be followed\u00a0by Temple members under threat of punishment; b) the stationing of\u00a0guards around Jonestown to prevent persons from escaping; and c) the\u00a0use of degrading punishments (for example, eating hot peppers), sleep-deprivation,\u00a0food-deprivation, hard labor, and other coercive techniques\u00a0commonly used in mind-programming.<\/p>\n
The evidence also shows that you, Jim Jones, confiscate the passports\u00a0and monies of people upon their arrival in Guyana, prohibit individual\u00a0contacts with “outsiders”, censor incoming and outgoing mail, prohibit\u00a0telephone calls by Temple members when in Georgetown, and require\u00a0Temple members to travel in groups. Ms. Crawford’s affidavit also\u00a0shows that you have publicly threatened that anyone who tries to leave\u00a0the “cause” will be killed.<\/p>\n
The aforesaid conduct by you is a wanton violation of the human rights\u00a0of our loved ones. It is also a violation of their constitutional\u00a0rights. The physical intimidation is a violation of the penal codes\u00a0of the United States and the Cooperative Republic of Guyana.<\/p>\n
V. THE HUMAN RIGHTS BEING VIOLATED<\/p>\n
We hereby bring to your attention, Jim Jones, the particular provisions\u00a0which guarantee human rights and constitutional rights that you are\u00a0violating:<\/p>\n
1. Confiscation of Passports<\/span>. Your systematic confiscation\u00a0of passports and all of the monies of Temple members upon their arrival\u00a0in Guyana is for the purpose of preventing them from leaving and returning\u00a0to the United States. You are thereby violating Article 13, Section\u00a02 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which reads:<\/p>\n
“Everyone has the right to leave any country, including his own,\u00a0and to return to his country.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Your conduct is also a violation of Article 14 (1) of the Constitution\u00a0of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, which reads:<\/p>\n
“No person shall be deprived of his freedom of movement, that is\u00a0to say, the right to move freely throughout Guyana,. the right to\u00a0leave Guyana..”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
2. Prohibiting Telephone Calls<\/span>. You systematically tell all\u00a0Temple members upon their arrival in Georgetown, Guyana that they\u00a0are not permitted, under threat of punishment, to make any telephone\u00a0calls to family members in the United States or elsewhere, your purpose\u00a0being to prevent negative information being imparted to relatives\u00a0in the U. S. Your additional purpose is to overcome the bonds of family\u00a0which might induce a Temple member to wish to return to his home in\u00a0the U. S. This conduct is a violation of Article 19 of the Universal\u00a0Declaration of Human Rights, which states:<\/p>\n
“Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this\u00a0right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to\u00a0seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and\u00a0regardless of frontiers.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
This conduct is also a violation of Article 12 (1) of the Guyana\u00a0Constitution, which reads:<\/p>\n
“Except with his own consent, no person shall be hindered in the\u00a0enjoyment of his freedom of expression, that is to say, freedom to\u00a0hold opinions without interference, freedom to communicate ideas and\u00a0information without interference and freedom from interference with\u00a0his correspondance [correspondence].”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
3. Prohibiting Contacts With Outsiders<\/span>. You systematically\u00a0require that all Temple members, while in Georgetown, not communicate\u00a0or visit with “outsiders” and not leave the communal headquarters\u00a0(41 Lamaha Gardens) unless in association with other Temple members.\u00a0You follow the same policy in Jonestown, enforcing your edicts with\u00a0guards. Your purpose is to prevent anyone going to the U. S. Embassy\u00a0and causing them to ask questions how you treat people. Your additional\u00a0purpose is to discourage Temple members from being exposed to other\u00a0religions or philosophies, and from viewing their lives independent\u00a0of communal obligations. Your conduct is a violation of Article 20,\u00a0Section 2 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which states:<\/p>\n
“No one may be compelled to belong to an association.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
It is also a violation of Article 18 of the same Declaration, which\u00a0states:<\/p>\n
“Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion;\u00a0this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and\u00a0freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or\u00a0private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice,\u00a0worship and observance.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Your conduct is also a violation of Article 13 (1) of the Guyana\u00a0Constitution, which reads:<\/p>\n
“Except with his own consent, no person shall be hindered in the\u00a0enjoyment of his freedom of assembly and association, that is to say,\u00a0his right to assemble freely and associate with other persons.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
4. Censoring Mail<\/span>. You systematically require that all of\u00a0the incoming mail and all of the outgoing mail of Temple members be\u00a0censored by your staff. Your purpose is to discourage negative information\u00a0being “leaked” to people in the U. S. and to prevent facts about the\u00a0“outside” world reaching Temple members which are at variance with\u00a0your “party line”. This is shown by the affidavit of Ms. Crawford\u00a0with respect to the Ku Klux Klan marching in the streets. Because\u00a0mail is the only means of contact available to our loved ones once\u00a0they are transported to Jonestown, you have thereby effectively cut\u00a0off all free expression and correspondance. Your conduct is a violation\u00a0of the right of our relatives to privacy, family, and correspondance\u00a0under Article 12 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which\u00a0states:<\/p>\n
“No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy,\u00a0family, home, or correspondance ***. Everyone has the right to the\u00a0protection of the law against such interference.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Your censoring of mail is also a violation of Article 12 (1) of the\u00a0Guyana Constitution, which is quoted above.<\/p>\n
5. Extorting Silence From Relatives<\/span>. You systematically require\u00a0that Temple members who write to their family members in the U. S.\u00a0threaten in their letters that they will stop all further communication\u00a0if any criticism is made of you or Peoples Temple. For example, Donna\u00a0Ponts is a 15-year old girl taken to Guyana in July 1977 without\u00a0her father’s knowledge and in violation of a court order requiring\u00a0her to remain in California unless he gave permission. Attached hereto\u00a0as Exhibit D is a letter from Donna to her grandmother which starts\u00a0out saying: “Grandma, Hi! How are you doing? I hope you and everyone\u00a0else are doing good”. It ends as follows:<\/p>\n
“I am sorry to hear that you called the radio station but since you\u00a0did I will not be writing you any more.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Those of us who receive letters from our relatives in Jonestown find\u00a0them standardized and unresponsive, as if written by machines. But\u00a0since it is all we have, these letters are very precious to us. You\u00a0have placed us in the agonizing dilemma of watching helplessly while\u00a0the rights of our reIatives are violated or losing all contact. We\u00a0have chosen, however, not to yield to your extortion, which is a violation\u00a0of Article 12 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, quoted\u00a0above, and of Article 13 (1) of the Guyana Constitution, also quoted\u00a0above.<\/p>\n
6. Prohibiting Our Children From Seeing Us<\/span>. Five of the parents\u00a0who have signed this accusation have travelled from San Francisco\u00a0some 5,000 miles in order to see their children since you took them\u00a0to Guyana. The evidence is clear that you have instituted a most pernicious\u00a0campaign to discredit us in our children’s eyes, as can be concluded\u00a0from the following experiences:<\/p>\n
a. Steven A. Katsaris<\/span>. On September 26, 1977 Steven A. Katsaris\u00a0arrived in Guyana and attempted to meet with his daughter, Maria.\u00a0She was prohibited from meeting with him, duress being employed by\u00a0you to force her to lie to the U. S. Embassy that she did not wish\u00a0to see her father because “he had molested” her. Mr. Katsaris had\u00a0with him a letter from Maria inviting him and saying, “I love you\u00a0& miss you.” On November 3, 1977 Mr. Katsaris returned to Guyana\u00a0to see his daughter, after first obtaining a promise of assistance\u00a0from the Guyanese Ambassador to the United States. After days of waiting,\u00a0Maria was allowed to see her father but only in the presence of three\u00a0other Temple members. Maria gave evidence of sleep deprivation and\u00a0a behavior pattern extremely hostile and different from that ever\u00a0manifested before. For the details of these two visits, refer to Exhibit\u00a0C.<\/p>\n
b. Howard and Beverly Oliver<\/span>. On December 19, 1977 Howard\u00a0and Beverly Oliver, together with their attorney Roger Holmes, arrived\u00a0in Guyana in order to see their two sons, William S. Oliver (age 17)\u00a0and Bruce Howard Oliver (age 20). In July 1977 both boys had told\u00a0their parents they were going to Guyana “for two weeks.” The Olivers\u00a0had a court order from a California Superior Court for the return\u00a0of William. They also had in their possession letters from each son\u00a0saying “I love you”. After spending eight days without success trying\u00a0to see their sons, they were told that “Jim Jones had a council meeting”\u00a0and the decision was that “it was best that we did not see or talk\u00a0to our sons.” Attached as Exhibit E is a handwritten account of Beverly\u00a0E. Oliver, together with a copy of a letter from each son.<\/p>\n
c. Timothy and Grace Stoen<\/span>. On January 4, 1978 Timothy and\u00a0Grace Stoen arrived in Guyana in connection with habeas corpus proceedings\u00a0commenced the preceding August. Although they had a California Superior\u00a0Court order which ordered you to deliver their six-year old
\nchild, John Victor Stoen, to them, you refused to let either parent\u00a0even see their child. The evidence also shows that you have falsely\u00a0accused Grace as being “unfit” (see Katsaris affidavit) and that on\u00a0January 18, 1978 three Temple members surrounded Timothy at Timehri\u00a0Airport in Guyana and threatened his and Grace’s lives if they did\u00a0not drop legal proceedings (see Crime Report made to Guyana Commissioner\u00a0of Police Lloyd Barker on January 18, 1978).<\/p>\nThe aforesaid conduct on your part constitutes a violation of Article\u00a012 (l) of the Guyana Constitution, quoted above, and Article 12 of\u00a0the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which states as follows:<\/p>\n
“No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his…family….”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
VI. DEMANDS FOR RELIEF<\/p>\n
We hereby demand that you, Jim Jones, immediately cease and desist\u00a0from the aforesaid conduct and that you do the following additional\u00a0acts immediately:<\/p>\n
1. Publicly answer our questions regarding your threat of a collective\u00a0“decision…to die”, and publicly promise U. S. Secretary of State\u00a0Cyrus Vance and Guyana Prime Minister Forbes Burnham that you will\u00a0never encourage or solicit the death of any person at Jonestown, whether\u00a0individually or collectively, for any reason whatsoever;<\/p>\n
2. Remove all guards physically preventing our relatives from leaving\u00a0Jonestown;<\/p>\n
3. Return all passports and money taken from our relatives to them\u00a0for their permanent possession;<\/p>\n
4. Permit and encourage our relatives a one-week visit home,\u00a0at our expense. (Because our relatives have been in Guyana for months\u00a0(and some, for years) and because it is our belief that they do not\u00a0know the full Peoples Temple story and have been prejudiced against\u00a0their families, we demand you demonstrate in practice your contention\u00a0that they are their own agents by permitting and encouraging our relatives\u00a0to visit their families in the U. S. for one week, with our guarantee\u00a0that we will provide them with round trip air fare and not interfere\u00a0with their return at the end of the family visit should they so choose.)<\/p>\n
5. Permit our relatives to write letters to whomever they wish, uncensored\u00a0and in private.<\/p>\n
6. Permit our relatives to read letters sent to them in private and\u00a0without censorship.<\/p>\n
7. Abide by the orders of the courts in the United States which you\u00a0have heretofore ignored.<\/p>\n
8. Notify us within three days on your radio-phone network\u00a0of your full acceptance and compliance with these demands by contacting:\u00a0Steven A. Katsaris, Trinity School, 915 West Church Street, Ukiah,\u00a0California 95482; telephone (707) 462-8721.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Array<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"parent":13080,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-13081","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/13081","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=13081"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/13081\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":113537,"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/13081\/revisions\/113537"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/13080"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=13081"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}