Commentary on the People’s Daily Editorial “The Japanese People’s Road to Independence” (July 14, 1952) Comrade Shaoqi: This piece should be centered on celebration; therefore, I have changed the title and added a paragraph at the end containing words of encouragement and congratulation. The bulk of the text is not very closely related to the theme, but it can still be used, though a major revision would be difficult. Mao Zedong July 14 Based on the manuscript for publication. Note [1]: Mao Zedong revised the editorial’s title to “Celebrating the Thirtieth Anniversary of the Japanese Communist Party.” At the end of the editorial, he added the following passage: “The glorious and heroic Japanese Communist Party has accumulated rich experience over its thirty-year history. This party has armed itself with Marxism-Leninism, remains closely linked to the masses, and has mastered the weapons of criticism and self-criticism. For these reasons, we have every reason to believe that it is capable of leading the Japanese people’s revolution to victory. On the occasion of the thirtieth anniversary of the founding of the Japanese Communist Party, we Chinese Communists and the Chinese people hereby extend our heartfelt congratulations in a spirit of fraternal friendship.” This editorial was published in the People’s Daily on July 15, 1952.