Comments and Revisions on the Draft Decision Approving Mao Zedong’s Proposal Not to Stand as a Candidate for the Next State Chairmanship
(December 8–9, 1958)

Comrade Xiaoping, please have this printed and distributed immediately.
Mao Zedong
December 8

Return to Comrade Xiaoping for distribution to all comrades. All relevant comrades are requested to relay this document by telephone this evening to all provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions, and to complete telephone conferences by the day after tomorrow or at the latest the day after that (December 12), conveying it down to the people’s communes.
Mao Zedong
December 9, 5:30 p.m.

Comrade Xiaoping:
There are a few revisions to the wording; no need to reprint—just publish it in the newspaper according to the revised draft when the time comes. After reading, please pass it on to Shangkun[1] for handling.
Mao Zedong
December 9

IV
For several years now, Comrade Mao Zedong has repeatedly proposed to the Central Committee that he hopes not to continue serving as Chairman of the People’s Republic of China. After thorough and multifaceted deliberation, the plenary session of the Central Committee has decided to approve Comrade Mao Zedong’s proposal and will no longer nominate him as a candidate for Chairman of the People’s Republic of China at the first session of the Second National People’s Congress. The plenary session of the Central Committee holds that this is an entirely constructive suggestion. Because Comrade Mao Zedong will not hold the post of State Chairman but will concentrate on serving as Chairman of the Party Central Committee, this will enable him to focus his energy more effectively on addressing issues concerning the Party’s and the nation’s principles, policies, and lines, and may also free up more time for him to engage in theoretical work on Marxism-Leninism, without impeding his continued leadership role in state affairs. In this way, it will be even more beneficial to the entire Party and the people of the whole country. Comrade Mao Zedong is a long-tested leader dearly beloved by the people of all ethnic groups across the nation. After he no longer holds the post of State Chairman, he will remain the leader of the people of all ethnic groups across the nation. In the future, should some special circumstance arise requiring him to resume such work, he may still be nominated again for the post of State Chairman in accordance with the will of the people and the decision of the Party. Party committees at all levels shall, based on these reasons, provide thorough explanations to cadres and the masses both inside and outside the Party at appropriate Party meetings, at sessions of people’s congresses at all levels, at gatherings of workers in industrial and mining enterprises, at gatherings in people’s communes, and at gatherings in government offices, schools, and military units, so that everyone understands the rationale behind this matter and no misunderstandings arise.

[1] Shangkun refers to Yang Shangkun, who was then an alternate secretary of the Secretariat of the CPC Central Committee and director of the General Office of the Central Committee.