3. A GROUP FOR A GOVERNMENT DEMONSTRATED POLITICALLY IN MOZAMBIQUE AND SCIENTIFICALLY IN MERSEYSIDE AND WASHINGTON, D.C.

The positive effects of A Group for a Government have been demonstrated politically by President Chissano of Mozambique. When he created A Group for a Government in his nation, political peace came to the land after nearly 30 years of war and a devastating two-year drought came to an end.

A Group for a Government has also been proved scientifically in a $5.7 million 2-month demonstration project in Washington, D.C. In June-July 1993, 4,000 Yogic Flyers from 80 countries gathered in Washington to reduce crime in the world's most powerful city, which suffers from an extremely high rate of violent crime.

Official data showed a 20% reduction in total violent crime in the District of Columbia (the district that includes Washington) during June and July, compared to predicted crime levels - based on crime trends during the previous five years.

Before the Group for a Government global demonstration project began in Washington, D.C., the government of the United States was suffering from repeated mistakes, embarrassing failures and a disastrous fall in public confidence.

Following the arrival of the first group of Yogic Flyers on June 7, there was a marked upsurge in the success and effectiveness of the US Government, including a more co-operative and harmonious atmosphere in Congress, more popularity for the US government, and improved relations between the USA and other nations.

The press commented on the sudden dramatic improvement in mood in Washington, and pointed out that there seemed to be no way of explaining it. They used phrases like: "Bill Clinton's brightening sky ..... what a difference a week makes" (New York Times) and "One may wonder whether Clinton really turned things around or if something else is going on." (The Washington Post).

On the basis of previous research on coherence-creating groups of Yogic Flyers, scientists had told a public news conference in Washington that a dramatic improvement of this kind would take place when the group of Yogic Flyers assembled there. At the same time they predicted that after the assembly ended, these positive trends would begin to be reversed. This prediction too was borne out in fact. Immediately following the assembly, the atmosphere of harmony and co-operation in Washington decreased; partisan rivalry in Congress rose; and support for the Clinton Administration's foreign policy declined.

Many assemblies of Yogic Flyers such as the Washington scientific demonstration project have been held throughout the world during the past 19 years with similar success. Scientific studies on these assemblies have overwhelmingly demonstrated the power of these coherence-creating groups to improve the quality of life on the city, national and global levels.

In Britain the Maharishi Effect has been clearly demonstrated in Merseyside, as shown in the findings of the study published in 1996 in the scientific journal Psychology, Crime and Law (1996, vol. 2:3, pp.165-174). The study found that in 1988 the crime rate in Merseyside was significantly reduced compared to 1987 and previous years, as a result of a group of people in nearby Skelmersdale and others in Liverpool practising the Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi programme of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. In each of the years 1989 to 1993 Merseyside crime rate performed significantly better than the national crime rate while the group of experts in Transcendental Meditation and Yogic Flying was maintained at the same level. In 1987 Merseyside had the third highest crime rate in England and Wales; in 1993, by the end of the study, it had the lowest crime rate of all the 11 metropolitan areas.

Overall, during the six-year period of the study, crime in Merseyside fell by 15% while crime in the rest of the country rose by 45%.

The study used the powerful statistical technique of time-series analysis which showed that the group of Yogic Flyers was the key factor in reducing crime. The results showed that the reduction in crime was not due to other factors such as unemployment, police practice, population trends, and drug rehabilitation initiatives.

All these validations of the Maharishi Effect demonstrate clearly that A Group for a Government is the basis for successful government and a peaceful, happy world, free from violence and crime.