Some 3,00 scientists and children in Shanghai Tuesday signed on a several tens of meters long fabric petition to show their strong opposition to evil cults.

This unveiled a large scale mass signing activity in China's largest city -- as part of the anti-cult drive sponsored by the China Anti-Cult Association, an estimated 100,000 Shanghai residents will sign their names on the fabric in the following 10 days.

"Evil cults have brought disaster to many families and done great harm to human rights. It is time for people from all walks of life to join hands to fight them," said Yu Chen, a participator and an official from the Shanghai Association of Science and Technology.

Bewitched by Falun Gong, an arrant evil cult, nearly 1,700 people in China have died because they refused medical treatment when ill or they committed suicide or self-mutilation, causing great and wide-spread anger among the masses.

(China Central Television 02/13/2001)