By Benjamin Kang Lim

BEIJING, Nov 13 (Reuter) - China has vowed to curb the influence of Buddhism in Tibet, saying religion would have to bow to socialism.

Monks outnumbered students and more money was spent on monasteries than on Communist Party buildings in the Himalayan region, the official Tibet Daily said in an edition seen in Beijing on Wednesday.

"In the basic interest of the Tibetan people, further development of temples, monks and nuns cannot be without restrictions," the newspaper said.

"Satisfying the basic needs of believers will do."

There were 1,787 temples in the restive region by early 1996, with 46,000 monks and nuns exceeding the number of high school students in the region, the newspaper said. It gave no comparative figures.

China has shut many temples in Tibet in recent years to uproot the influence of the region's spiritual god-king, the Dalai Lama, who fled into exile in India in 1959 after an abortive uprising against communist rule.

Socialism must take precedence over religion, the newspaper said.

"Religion must adapt to the development needs of socialism and not socialism adapting to the needs of religion. We must remain clear-headed on this principle," it said.

The Dalai Lama won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989 for his non-violent campaign for autonomy for his homeland, but Beijing views international support for Tibet's holiest man as a Western plot to return the region to feudal rule and split China.

Beijing says the Dalai Lama is a political activist and not a purely religious figure.

"International anti-Chinese forces use the Tibet issue to contain China's development and (the Tibet issue) is an important means to 'Westernise' and 'divide' China," the newspaper said.

"Some temples are directly or indirectly controlled by the Dalai Lama clique and become the headquarters and venue of separatist forces at home and abroad," the newspaper said.

"Since 1987, elements creating disturbances and sabotaging stability have been mainly law-breaking monks and nuns."

Tibet has been rocked by repeated anti-Chinese protests that Beijing charges are stirred up by supporters of the Dalai Lama.

The newspaper also complained that monks did not contribute to economic growth.

"It goes without saying that such a large number of strong young people relying on alms from the masses and not engaging in productive work has a negative effect on social and economic development," the newspaper said.

"Money spent on renovating temples is more than money spent on building or repairing Communist Party and government buildings," it said.

Beijing, eager not to antagonise all of the Buddhist clergy, has pumped 53 million yuan ($6.4 million) into its five-year renovation of the sprawling Potala Palace, winter home of the Dalai Lamas for centuries.