diff --git a/hgweb.cgi b/hgweb.cgi
--- a/hgweb.cgi
+++ b/hgweb.cgi
@@ -3,6 +3,8 @@
 # An example CGI script to use hgweb, edit as necessary
 
 import cgitb, os, sys
+cgitb.enable()
+
 # sys.path.insert(0, "/path/to/python/lib") # if not a system-wide install
 from mercurial import hgweb
 
diff --git a/mercurial/hgweb.py b/mercurial/hgweb.py
--- a/mercurial/hgweb.py
+++ b/mercurial/hgweb.py
@@ -6,10 +6,6 @@
 # This software may be used and distributed according to the terms
 # of the GNU General Public License, incorporated herein by reference.
 
-# useful for debugging
-import cgitb
-cgitb.enable()
-
 import os, cgi, time, re, difflib, sys, zlib
 from mercurial.hg import *
 from mercurial.ui import *