“Rule of Law on Religious Work” Now Imposed on All Religions

United Front chief Li Ganjie has indicated the doctrine announced in April by top CCP ideologist Wang Huning as mandatory.

By Hu Zimo

July 15, 2025

Li Ganjie speaking at the June 24 seminar. Screenshot.

In May 2025, “Bitter Winter” discussed a key lecture delivered by the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) top ideologist, Wang Huning, at the 30^th  biweekly consultation meeting of the 14th National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference on April 24.

Wang took advantage of a routine meeting to discuss religion, promoting the new idea of the “rule of law on religious work.”

This was an application of Wang’s favorite idea of a rule of law with Chinese characteristics to religion. While the Western, bourgeois rule of law suggests that everyone is subject to the law, including the government, the Chinese version is based on the idea that the law and the courts are subject to the Communist Party and its interests.

On April 24, Wang explained that this also applies to religion. Regulations, including the internal rules of the five authorized religions, should always be interpreted according to the Party’s goals and interests. Decisions by religious leaders can always be second-guessed or changed by the direct intervention of the Party and the United Front.

We easily predicted that any proposal from a leader like Wang Jinping would quickly turn into policy. In fact, according to China’s state television and other official sources, a seminar on “Strengthening the rule of law in the governance of religious affairs” was held in Beijing on June 24. The top United Front leader, Li Ganjie, a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and the Minister of the Central United Front Work Department, was the main speaker.

An image of the June 24 seminar. Screenshot.

Li stated that the “rule of law on religious work” is a key part of the Sinicization of religion in China, which, as readers of “Bitter Winter” know, does not mean making religion more Chinese but rather more submissive to the Communist Party.

Li explained that the “rule of law on religious work” means strengthening the Party’s leadership, sticking to its system philosophy, and allowing the Party and the United Front to take control and directly guide religious groups when necessary.

Li Ganjie emphasized that “we must consistently apply Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era to unify people and shape hearts, fully implement the Party’s religious policies for the new era, and effectively steer religious work toward the rule of law and adaptation to socialist society.”

Source: bitterwinter.org