Scientology Cruise Ship as Hellhole: The Ramana Dienes-Browning Story - 2011-12-04

Scientology Cruise Ship as Hellhole: The Ramana Dienes-Browning Story December 4, 2011, Tony Ortega, Runnin' Scared, Village Voice

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Ramana Dienes-Browning, happy to be out of Scientology (Photo: Jason Sinclair) Last week, Steve Cannane of Australia's ABC network and its program Lateline broke the story of Valeska Paris, a woman who says she was held against her will on Scientology's private cruise ship, the Freewinds, from 1996 to 2007.

In that story, Cannane also talked to Ramana Dienes-Browning, a former senior executive on the ship who backed up Valeska's claims. "She had been sent to the ship so as not to be in contact with one of her parents and that's not what she wanted. She was very, very distressed," Ramana said of Valeska. "Do you consider it now it to be imprisonment?" Cannane asked her. "Yes, yes, I would definitely consider it imprisonment because there was no choice in the matter," she answered.

The church denied that Valeska was held captive, and Scientology spokeswoman Karin Pouw's statement (available below) made no mention of Dienes-Browning.

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{{cite news | author = Tony Ortega | title = Scientology Cruise Ship as Hellhole: The Ramana Dienes-Browning Story | url = http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runninscared/2011/12/ramana_dienes_browning_scientology_freewinds.php?page=all | work = Runnin' Scared | publisher = Village Voice | date = December 4, 2011 | accessdate = January 14, 2017 }}