Report Disaster Conditions Truthfully and Openly
(20 June 1959)

Comrades Qiaomu and Lengxi [1]:

The heavy rains in Guangdong must be reported truthfully and openly. Disaster conditions nationwide should likewise be reported openly, to rouse the people to struggle with all their might. There must be absolutely no concealment. Government relief and the people’s own production for self-salvation must be vigorously reported and advocated. Major industrial accidents and calamities must also be reported, with attention paid to countermeasures. This document [2] is to be returned after reading.

Mao Zedong
20 June, 4:00 a.m.

[1] Qiaomu, namely Hu Qiaomu (1912–1992), a native of Yancheng, Jiangsu Province, then Alternate Secretary of the Secretariat of the CPC Central Committee and Secretary to Mao Zedong. Lengxi, namely Wu Lengxi (1919–2002), a native of Xinhui, Guangdong Province, then Director of the New China News Agency and Editor-in-Chief of *Renmin Ribao*.
[2] Refers to Issue No. 2801 of the *Internal Reference*, compiled and printed by the New China News Agency on 18 June 1959. This issue carried two reports: “Flood Disaster in Guangdong Continues to Develop, the Province’s Work Focus Shifts to Flood Resistance and Disaster Relief” and “The People of Guangzhou City Are Extremely Concerned About the Development of the Flood Situation.”