THE FACTS MATTER: REACTION TO BMF BLOG POST 22 AUGUST 2018

August 23, 2018

Bruno Manser Fonds and Lukas Straumann wrote another blog post on 22 August 2018 in which they ask Sakto's law firm, VISCHER AG, a number of questions. Neither Sakto nor VISCHER AG will discuss the topics raised by Lukas Straumann in public. Sakto has applied to the Basel Civil Court to re-establish the facts and restore its reputation – the Court will decide.

---

It is clear that being on the defensive is making BMF and Lukas Straumann nervous. Rather than focus on defending their case in Court, they continue to repeat their untrue allegations on Sakto and its founders, attacking even Sakto's law firm.

BMF’s standard behaviour and approach is to put up smokescreens and deflect attention from the real matter at hand. The reason for that behaviour is obvious: BMF and Lukas Straumann are well aware that their so-called "evidence" does not bear scrutiny in Court. Therefore, they have been running a character assassination campaign against Sakto for eight years. For this same reason, they are now trying to silence anyone who aligns themselves with Sakto and the facts.
 
In February 2018, BMF presented before the Ontario Superior Court of Justice everything they had accumulated against Sakto since 2010 – thousands of pages of so-called "evidence", two affidavits by Lukas Straumann, and a detailed factum (legal argumentation). On top of these, Lukas Straumann attempted to argue his case during six hours of cross-examination… none of that made an impression in Court. The judge squarely rejected BMF's application and made clear that BMF's information dossier is in actual fact based on rumours, hearsay, and media articles and reports, many of which were created by BMF themselves.
 
BMF's allegations of money laundering against Sakto "depend on conjecture and suspicion more than evidence," Justice Dunphy concluded.
 
Despite this clear judgment, Lukas Straumann continues to repeat his allegations time and again – and to repeat them as if they were facts. They are not.
 
An NGO should not be beyond the law. It is time for BMF and Lukas Straumann to be held accountable for their words and actions. Their case has been dismissed in Canada. It is time for them to face justice in Switzerland. It is time for them to stop their illegal activities.
 
Sakto is asking the Basel Civil Court for an injunction, ordering BMF to remove their infringing content from the public domain – more than 1'100 infringing statements and over 250 articles and publications. They would also be ordered to stop repeating their false allegations.
 
Let’s be clear. This is not an attack on the NGO and its mission. We simply wish for BMF and Lukas Straumann to remove their false and defamatory allegations from the public domain and to stop their misguided campaign against Sakto and its founders.