There are few people who have played a more consistent role in broadly supporting the rights of religious believers in China

than Marco Respinti, director in charge of Bitterwinter magazine.

In the first six to eight months of our existence online as a magazine,

some 40 people who were connected to us were arrested in China and half of them

simply disappeared. So we know nothing about that. During the International Religious Freedom

Summit in Washington, D.C., I had the great pleasure of finally sitting down with Marco for a deep dive,

where he reveals why he fights so hard

for the religious freedom of people of all faiths, as a Roman Catholic himself.

And he breaks down how the Chinese Communist Party systematically infiltrates, co-ops,

and destroys religious movements in China.

This is American Thought Leaders, and I'm Yanyi Kelley.

Marco Respinti, such a pleasure to have you on American Thought Leaders. My pleasure. Totally.

Marco, I've had this deep, deep respect for you for quite a long time through your work,

exposing human rights violations in China and especially those of religious

minorities in particular. I believe that the freedom of conscience or freedom of belief

is probably the most fundamental right that exists. What do you think?

I think that the most fundamental right for a human being, for a person is the right to life,

because otherwise if you're dead, no rights.

In my opinion, this is the first.

The second, but it's direct, the relationship, is the freedom of conscience or religious freedom

because they're strictly connected, one is inside the other.

Because it's all about addressing the most fundamental question of all in human life.

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