CHINA: A court in Beijing has sentenced a New York Times researcher to three years in prison for fraud but, in a rare and embarrassing setback for the state security ministry, it dismissed more serious charges of leaking national secrets.
The jailing of Zhao Yan yesterday comes amid a crackdown on civil rights campaigners, lawyers and journalists in an apparent attempt to crush dissent before the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.
The Beijing No 2 Intermediate People's Court announced its verdict on Zhao almost two years after he was taken into custody. His detention came soon after the New York Times broke the news that former president Jiang Zemin was about to step down as head of the armed forces.
Although the newspaper denied he was the source for the story, Zhao was charged with passing on state secrets, an offence which usually carries a penalty of more than 10 years.
The trial consisted of a single closed hearing at which no defence witnesses were permitted to testify, but there has been intense political pressure for leniency, including an appeal by President George Bush.