diff --git a/autogen.sh b/autogen.sh
index 101bac187..0c3d05093 100755
--- a/autogen.sh
+++ b/autogen.sh
@@ -8,7 +8,6 @@ autoheader
 # Automake is unhappy without NEWS and README, but we don't have any
 touch NEWS README
 automake -a -c -f
-rm -f NEWS README
 
 autoconf