Disgraced former party leader paroled

Former Beijing party boss Chen Xitong has been released on medical parole after serving eight years of his 16-year jail sentence for corruption, the South China Morning Post reported. Chen, who was a Politburo member and the mainland's eighth-ranked leader, was sacked as party secretary of Beijing in 1995 for involvement in a spate of corruption scandals. Several of his family members and associates were also involved, including former Beijing executive deputy mayor Wang Baosen, who later killed himself. Chen was sentenced to 16 years for corruption and dereliction of duty in 1998, but many of his supporters believed the sentence was politically motivated, and Chen maintained his innocence. Separately, former China Everbright Holdings chairman Zhu Xiaohua has also been released on medical parole after serving four years of a 15-year sentence for corruption. He was convicted of accepting bribes worth US$500,000 in stock and cash between 1997 and 1999, when he was chairman of the investment conglomerate.