On September 14th, 1993, just nine days before the International Olympic Committee was to vote on Beijing's bid to stage the 2000 Olympic Games, the Chinese government released the leading dissident, Wei Jingsheng. The bid failed, and within six months Wei was back in detention.
Now, eight days before the US-China summit, history may repeat itself. Beijing is full of rumours that Wei will be released again, to diminish the prospect that the human rights issue will jeopardise the success of the meeting.
The reports gained credence yesterday when a senior US embassy official, quoted by Reuters, said that the United States was hopeful it could persuade China to free jailed political dissidents before the summit between President Jiang Zemin and President Clinton.
Also, during a briefing of journalists, a top Chinese official hinted at the possibility of medical parole for dissidents.
Wei Jingsheng (47) is serving 15 years for plotting to overthrow the government, and is said by his relatives to be very ill.
A student protest leader, Wang Dan, who was sentenced to 11 years in 1996 for subversion, is also said to be in poor health. Both were nominated for this year's Nobel Peace Prize.
The unnamed American diplomat said China had not ruled out freeing activists on medical parole in discussions with US officials.
"We have indicated to them that one of the most effective things that could be done to help neutralise the human rights question . . . would be the release of some dissidents," he said, adding: "We are hopeful."
Setting a prominent dissident free could take the edge off human rights demonstrations which are expected to dog Mr Jiang during his visit from next Sunday until November 2nd, the first by a Chinese head of state since before the crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrations in 1989.
In an interview with Time magazine, the Chinese president insisted that Wei and Wang were common criminals. "They were brought to justice not because they are so-called political dissidents but because they violated China's criminal law," he said.
Reuters adds from Washington: Tibetan autonomy activists are planning a string of "photo opportunity" protests for Mr Jiang, including a candlelight vigil outside the Chinese embassy on his arrival.
The next day, actor Richard Gere, a long-time pro-Tibetan activist, has invited fellow sympathisers, Harrison Ford, Uma Thurman and Sharon Stone, among others, to join him at a "stateless dinner" timed to upstage and mock Mr Clinton's formal White House dinner for Mr Jiang.