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At least 600 members of China cult detained-group

HONG KONG: Chinese authorities have detained at least 600 followers of the Zhong Gong meditation group after it was declared a cult, a Hong Kong-based human rights group said on Saturday.

Authorities began targetting the group, which is similar to China's banned Falun Gong spiritual movement, last October and have closed down 100 of its offices, said the Information Centre of Human Rights & Democratic Movement in China.

"Since October, at least 600 Zhong Gong followers have been detained," it said in a statement.

Zhong Gong, which claims more than 10 million followers in China, practises "Qigong", a traditional Chinese system of deep breathing exercises or meditation.

On Friday, police in Heilongjiang province informed the family of Cheng Yaqin, a senior Zhong Gong member who was detained on October 12, that Cheng had been "formally arrested".

No charges have yet been laid against Cheng, the centre said.

Beijing's move against Zhong Gong comes amid a campaign to crush Falun Gong, which was outlawed last July and branded an "evil cult".

The crackdown on Falun Gong, which has seen at least four followers die in police custody and many more sent to psychiatric wards, has drawn criticism from international human rights groups and governments.-Reuters