06 May 2004 :

Following a visit to the Italian Senate by a delegation of Vietnamese parliamentarians, a communiqué was released stating, "the president of the parliamentary foreign commission, Gustavo Selva, highlighted the lack of human rights in the country, demonstrated by the inclusion of the death penalty in Vietnam's criminal code and by the civil and religious persecution of the Montagnard who inhabit the central highlands."
The Vietnamese delegation was headed by the country's Foreign Commission President at the National Assembly, Vu Mao, who, according to the release, "in reply to a question put forward by Selva, stated that 50 executions had taken place in the country in the past year."