E/CN.4/1999/58/Add.2 page 14 1. Information from the authorities 48. Apart from the information which is given above on government policy in the religious field and is thus relevant to the Buddhists, the Office of Religious Affairs gave an historical survey of Buddhism in Viet Nam and, with reference to the EBUV, explained that a minority within that organization had in 1981 refused unification within the Buddhist Association of Viet Nam. The representative of the Office of Religious Affairs stated that the refusal was of no interest to the Government and did not constitute a problem. He added that some members of the EBUV had been arrested and convicted for failure to respect the law. 49. The Deputy Minister of Public Safety refuted the allegations concerning the presence in the pagodas of false bonzes belonging to the security services, while specifying that all citizens must be supervised. The Institute of Research into Religion stated that it did not have sufficient documentation to establish the legality or otherwise of EBUV activities. 50. In reply to a question asked by the Special Rapporteur concerning the demonstration organized by bonzes at Hue on 24 May 1993 for religious freedom and human rights, the Vice-Chairman of the Province of Hue said that religion must not be taken advantage of to perpetrate evil deeds. He said that such behaviour was condemned by the Buddhist religion. He concluded that the case was over and done with and that those responsible had since been released from prison. The Hue Director of Religious Affairs explained that, if the demonstration had genuinely been of a religious nature, the whole population would have risen up. 51. The commander of re-education camp No. Z30A, at Xuan Loc in the province of Dong Nai, informed the Special Rapporteur of the release on 24 October 1998, in the context of an amnesty, of Thich Nhat Ban, an EBUV bonze. He stated that Thich Hue Dang, an EBUV bonze, was not in the camp. 52. With respect to the Khmers Krom, the representative of the Office of Religious Affairs stated that they were members of the Buddhist Association of Viet Nam and that they accounted for more than 10,000 bonzes out of a total of 28,000, despite their small population. The Deputy Minister of Public Safety took the view that the Khmers Krom enjoyed freedom of religion. 2. Information from the Buddhist Association of Viet Nam 53. The representatives of the Buddhist Association of Viet Nam stated that Buddhists enjoyed freedom of religion in a period auspicious for religious practice, the building and renovation of places of worship, religious publications and the training of monks in Buddhist training institutes in Viet Nam or in study courses abroad. It was mentioned that the movements of monks were subject to the authorization of the Buddhist Association of Viet Nam. 54. The representative in Hanoi said that State policy was characterized by non-interference in the internal affairs of the Buddhist Association of Viet Nam and by assistance to religions and the creation of favourable conditions.