MUFON, CATCHPHRASE IS:
"THE SCIENTIFIC STUDY OF UFOS FOR THE BENEFIT OF HUMANITY""AFTER READYING THIS STORY ABOUT THE MUFON'S GAG ORDER ON STAR TEAM MEMBERS, YOU HAVE TO WONDER IF MUFON IS ACTUALLY STUDYING UFOS FOR THE BENEFIT OF HUMANITY OR IF THEY HAVE SOME ALTERNATIVE MOTIVE THAT THEY ARE NOT TELLING HUMANITY ABOUT!"
The following analysis has been conducted by the Committee to Reform MUFON for the benefit of the Members of MUFON. Every effort has been made to ensure accuracy and sound judgment in this analysis.
The Gagged-for-life Star Team Confidentiality Agreement
What follows below is the MUFON Star Team confidentiality agreement, which must be signed by all Star Team investigators, this version being the one in use as of last summer. It is an amazing document which seems to require a permanent, never-to-end secrecy of all Star Team cases-the most important cases MUFON handles.
MUFON's mission is to develop UFO information and provide that information to Members and the American people. That is what the Committee to Reform MUFON believes, and as far as we know, almost all Members of MUFON believe the same thing-every shred of case information is to be provided to the public (except witness names). Yet here we have a document which will make you wonder if the leadership of MUFON truly believes in the Mission as we understand it.
The Following Conditions of Confidentiality Must be Agreed to if the Applicant Is to be considered for STAR Team Membership
Any and all communication is to be directed only to the MUFON International Director or the Director of Investigations.
Strict confidentiality is in force from the moment of deployment notification. Discussion of destination and travel method communications within your immediate family is acceptable. Friends, family or other are not to be informed of any Team findings.
There is to be no media communication of any type, including reporters, television, radio, email, or other source or places of public discussion.
All findings including but not limited to the following: measurements, photographs, video of any kind, drawings, renditions, witness testimony, hearsay evidence, writings, and conclusions, are the sole property of MUFON International. Books and letters of any kind are forbidden to be written concerning an event.
All notes, reports, witness writings and findings are the exclusive property of MUFON International.
Photographs, video taken by a witness remain the witness property unless surrendered to MUFON International. Physical Evidence and Media Release Forms must be signed in all cases where material and evidence is obtained from witness or other individuals.
4Any information, evidence or findings shall not be given to any Law Enforcement or Government Agency without approval from MUFON's International Director or by Due Process of Law. Any violation of the conditions of confidentiality will be cause for immediate disciplinary action.
In Summary
Without Exception, Everything Concerning a STAR Team Deployment is Strictly Confidential and Must be Maintained at the Highest Level of Security
The requirements set out in this document should not be confused with MUFON's traditional practice of keeping witness identity confidential on request. MUFON has always offered to keep the names and addresses of witnesses confidential, but that is not what this document is talking about. This document is about keeping the information of the case confidential, apparently forever.
No expiration date
No "expiration date" of the case information is mentioned, or even implied, in this Star Team agreement. By expiration date, we mean the conditions on which the confidentiality will end-the most obvious one, the one we expect to find, being the completion of the case. We expect the agreement to say that when the investigation is complete, the confidentiality will end. But it doesn't.
Instead, the investigator is notified he or she will not be writing books about any Star Team cases. Books are written in the future. No books? No end to the confidentiality. Gagged for life, it would seem. This requirement must be a surprise to those MUFON investigators who get into investigation work precisely so they can write books and articles. Instead, under the regime set forth here, the UFO investigator seems to be operating simply as a tool of MUFON International, and all information collected becomes the "sole property" of MUFON International.
The most important cases
We are at pains to make sure all Members of MUFON reading this understand that the confidentiality agreement shown here is presented to only a handful of MUFON field investigators, those participating in the Star Team. It is equally important to under-stand that the Star Team handles the most important cases that come in to MUFON.
Since late 2008 when the first Star Team was established, all the important cases have been taken away from the states and from the approx. 500 regular field investigators in MUFON, and reserved exclusively for the Star Team. During 2009, when the Bigelow contract was in effect, Star Team investigators numbered about 80 and they were paid employees of MUFON. Today, Star Team investigators number probably no more than 20, and they are volunteers. The confidentiality agreement shown here was written for these post-Bigelow volunteer investigators.
MUFON defines an "important case" as a close approach to a witness, a landing case, a case in which an entity is seen, or a case with multiple witnesses. The virtue of the Star Team, as it was advertised within MUFON, was the Team's rapid response capability. Star Team members are told to have a suitcase packed and be ready to depart on a moment's notice. When Bigelow funding was available, the investigators' airfare and hotel was paid. The idea was to get to the scene of an event quickly.
For more information and to read the rest of the storyhttp://www.educatinghumanity.com/feeds/posts/default
