As for religious freedom, "the object of the right is not the actual content of a given religious faith, but the immunity from any coercion, almost a secure area, which guarantees the inviolability of a human space in which the faithful, and the community in which his faith is expressed, are free to act without any external pressure," explained Bertone. For the Secretary of State, "when the right to life and the right to religious freedom are not protected, the respect of other rights is also undermined." After having recalled the speeches of Paul VI (1965), John Paul II (1995) and Benedict XVI to the UN General Assembly, the Cardinal said the Declaration draws the "exact nature" of human rights "from the dignity which is common to every human being" and made it clear that "defending fundamental rights means not to mistake them as mere and often limited contingent needs." "Even when they are recognised and fixed in a convention, human rights need constant protection." "Respecting and reinvigorate fundamental rights is a concrete way to oppose different and wide-spread forms of abandoning moral principles in social relations, from the inter-personal dimension to that of international relations." ” “
