Former Top Aide Sentenced to 7 Years for Beijing Protests

BEIJING —  Bao Tong, the most senior official arrested in connection with China’s 1989 pro-democracy demonstrations, was sentenced Tuesday to seven years in prison.

Bao, 58, who was the top aide to former Communist Party General Secretary Zhao Ziyang, was found guilty by a Beijing court of leaking state secrets and of counterrevolutionary incitement.

A court official said that Bao will be given credit for the three years already spent behind bars and should be released in four years.

Western diplomats were divided in their views on the verdict and sentence. Some called it a clear signal that Beijing would not tolerate political challenges to the Communist Party, even as it promotes economic reform.

Other diplomats, however, noted that Bao could have received a much heavier sentence.

The two so-called “black hands” behind the Tian An Men Square protests, Chen Ziming and Wang Juntao, were each sentenced to 13 years in prison. Student leader Wang Dan, one of dozens of students jailed after the protests were crushed, was sentenced to four years. Other sentences have gone as high as 20 years.