Personal bit to add to the thread. When 89' happened my family was in Germany and dad (not a party member durrr) was in Gottingen U doing his PhD. All Chinese students were offered refugee status and permission to stay in Germany. Now no one we knew was an activist or even cared about democracy, they were just students and most of them were sent on government scholarships to increase academic communication with the west. But some of them took the 'refugee status' anyways, understandable I guess, because life was much more prosperous in Germany. My family didn't, and years later, every single one of them wanted to go back to China and were allowed to. Germany they found was still the same xenophobic and intolerant place that it was (it was ok if you're a student but if you wanted to take 'German' jobs.... oh boy), they were heavily discriminated against.
Chinese government holding no grudge let every single one of these persecuted 'pro-democracy' refugees back into the country, and now many of the ones that my parents still keep in touch with holding teaching positions and research positions given by the government.