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Bo Xilai， former Secretary of the Chongqing Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China（CPC）， went on trial on August 22-26， after an 18-month absence from public appearances since March 2012.
Bo， 64， has been charged with bribery， embezzlement and abuse of power. He was expelled from the CPC and public office last September.
Before Bo’s trial， his wife Bogu Kailai and Wang Lijun， former Vice Mayor and police chief of Chongqing， were both put on trial and convicted in August and September 2012， respectively. Bogu Kailai was sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve for intentional homicide and Wang was sentenced to 15 years in prison for manipulation of the law for self-gain as well as defection， abuse of power and bribe taking. They both confessed to the crimes they had been charged with and offered testimonies outlining the scale of Bo’s involvement.
A long trial
Bo’s trial began at the Jinan Intermediate People’s Court in east China’s Shandong Province.
According to the indictment， from 1999 to 2012， while serving as mayor of Dalian City in northeast China’s Liaoning Province， secretary of CPC Dalian Committee， governor of Liaoning and minister of commerce， Bo accepted bribes totaling an estimated 21.8 million yuan（$3.56 million） from two business people， Tang Xiaolin， General Manager of Dalian International Development Co. Ltd.， and Xu Ming， Chairman of Dalian Shide Group Co. Ltd， in exchange for providing help in the obtainment of the prefer- ential quotas necessary to import cars and work on petrochemical projects.
The indictment also stated that in January and February 2012， while serving as Party chief of Chongqing， Bo abused his power in order to help Bogu Kailai when she was suspected of murdering British national Neil Heywood， and also abused it further when Wang Lijun defected.
Further abuses of power included impeding the reinvestigation of Bogu Kailai’s case and approving the release of false news that Wang was receiving “vacation-style treatment.”
Prosecutors displayed documented evidence and brought witnesses to testimony， together with sharing video and audio records of the witness’ examinations.
During the trial， key witnesses， including Xu Ming， Wang Zhenggang， former head of the Dalian Municipal Bureau of Urban and Rural Planning and Land， and Wang Lijun， appeared to testify in court.
The prosecution and defense cross-examined the witnesses and gave their views on the evidence presented. Bo did not acknowledge the charges against him. He frequently defended himself by saying the evidence was “irrelevant”or that he had only a vague impression of the events， but failed to offer evidence that could be used to refute the accusations during his defense.
Before the trial， Bo made a handwritten testimony confessing that he had in fact accepted money from Tang Xiaolin.
While in court， Bo claimed that he was put under pressure when writing his confession and raised the question of whether or not the testimonies from witnesses called against him had been made under similar conditions. His defense team asserted that his handwritten confession contradicted Bo’s claims in court and that it was false. They put forward the claim that the confession should be excluded as illegal.
Prosecutors said that the evidence presented in court was authentic and obtained legally from the sources used and that the evidence brought to light across the duration of the investigation was enough to identify the defendant’s conduct as being criminal. According to prosecutors， Bo had written the confession alone and nobody was in his presence at the time of writing.
The court investigation phase lasted for a total of four days and concluded on August 25.
On August 26， prosecutors summarized their case and demanded a heavy sentence for Bo.
They said that the evidence presented and cross-examinations both demonstrated clearly the true nature of Bo’s conduct and that the evidence was sufficient to charge him with the crimes. They also pointed out that the investigation and conclusions were based on evidence presented and that any attempts to deny the crimes were in vain.
In response， Bo made a 90-minute statement denying the charges. He insisted that he was not aware of or involved in any of the crimes， and he questioned the credibility of the witness testimonies. His defense team expressed their opinions concerning the motives of the defendant， the credibility of evidence and validity of collection.
“The court will carefully and comprehensively review the evidence in order to fully consider the case from both sides and make a judgment based on the facts presented and the law，” said a court spokesman after the trial.
The verdict will be announced at a date yet to be decided.
Progress in transparency
The trial of Bo saw an attendance of more than 100 people， including his relatives. For the entire duration of the trial， the Jinan Intermediate People’s Court used Sina Weibo， a popular Twitter-like micro-blogging service， to deliver a running account of court proceedings. On account of the trial， the number of followers of the court’s microblog saw a sixty-fold increase from 10，000 on August 22 to almost 600，000 by August 28. The court also arranged a media lobby at a nearby hotel to provide a live feed of trial details to reporters.
“This is the first time details of a former senior Chinese official’s trial have been released to the public in real-time . In the past， such trials took place behind closed doors， with details being released only after sentencing，” said Li Zhuang， a lawyer in Beijing.
Li said that open trials of officials like Bo mark great progress in China’s judicial system and serve as a serious warning that those violating the law should not deceive themselves into believing that they can evade legal punishment through good luck.
“The decision to share court proceedings through micro-blogging came as a direct response to claims against the transparency and legitimacy of China’s political and legal systems. For the public， it was also a vivid lesson on how the rule of law must be respected，” Li said.
Wang Peng， an editor with Shandong Electronic Audio and Video Publishing House， observed the trial.
“Sitting in the courtroom， I learnt many of the case’s details，” he said. “I believe the court will make a fair judgment.”
Liu Bingjun， Dean of the Law School of Shandong University of Political Science and Law， said that the trial and pre-trial procedures showcased the openness and fairness of the justice system.
“The whole trial followed strict legal procedures. The prosecution and defense were both given the full opportunities necessary to express their opinions，” said Liu， who also attended the trial.
An article on bbc.co.uk said the broadcasts were “an unprecedented display of transparency for a trial in China， and therefore drew massive attention from the Chinese public.”
A commentary on the website of the Ta Kung Pao newspaper in Hong Kong said that there is a need to meet demand for information to lead public opinion rather than allow true and fake news to mingle together on microblogging sites.
Pledge against corruption
“The court is using new media for timely and accurate disclosure of events from the trial through transcripts and pictures. This greatly satisfies concerns the general public have in regards to Bo’s case and also indicates the new central leadership’s confidence in its governance， the rule of law and its anti-graft crackdowns，” said an article written by Yang Fei on Guangming Daily’s website. After assuming office in November 2012， the new CPC leadership has paid great attention to fighting corruption， calling on the whole Party to stay on full alert， as corruption is a threat to its survival.
Earlier in August， former Minister of Railways Liu Zhijun was given a suspended death penalty for bribery and abuse of power. Liu’s sentence followed the recent sacking and investigation of several senior officials for suspected violations of law and disciplines.
At a plenary meeting of the CPC’s Central Commission for Discipline Inspection in January， Xi Jinping， General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee， pledged to unflinchingly fight against corruption and keep power reined within a “cage of regulations.”
Disciplinary， preventive and guarantee mechanisms should be set up to ensure that people do not dare to， and are also not able to commit acts of corruption， Xi said.
On August 27， at a meeting presided over by Xi， the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee approved a plan for 2013-17 that deals with improving the system for disciplining officials involved in corruption and preventing others from being involved.
For the CPC， building a system to fight corruption is a “major political task” and combating it is a responsibility that society shares as a whole， said a statement issued after the meeting.
The exercise of power by officials must be checked and supervised so as to create a system where officials dare not be corrupt and corruption will be stopped in its tracks， the statement added.
Bo， 64， has been charged with bribery， embezzlement and abuse of power. He was expelled from the CPC and public office last September.
Before Bo’s trial， his wife Bogu Kailai and Wang Lijun， former Vice Mayor and police chief of Chongqing， were both put on trial and convicted in August and September 2012， respectively. Bogu Kailai was sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve for intentional homicide and Wang was sentenced to 15 years in prison for manipulation of the law for self-gain as well as defection， abuse of power and bribe taking. They both confessed to the crimes they had been charged with and offered testimonies outlining the scale of Bo’s involvement.
A long trial
Bo’s trial began at the Jinan Intermediate People’s Court in east China’s Shandong Province.
According to the indictment， from 1999 to 2012， while serving as mayor of Dalian City in northeast China’s Liaoning Province， secretary of CPC Dalian Committee， governor of Liaoning and minister of commerce， Bo accepted bribes totaling an estimated 21.8 million yuan（$3.56 million） from two business people， Tang Xiaolin， General Manager of Dalian International Development Co. Ltd.， and Xu Ming， Chairman of Dalian Shide Group Co. Ltd， in exchange for providing help in the obtainment of the prefer- ential quotas necessary to import cars and work on petrochemical projects.
The indictment also stated that in January and February 2012， while serving as Party chief of Chongqing， Bo abused his power in order to help Bogu Kailai when she was suspected of murdering British national Neil Heywood， and also abused it further when Wang Lijun defected.
Further abuses of power included impeding the reinvestigation of Bogu Kailai’s case and approving the release of false news that Wang was receiving “vacation-style treatment.”
Prosecutors displayed documented evidence and brought witnesses to testimony， together with sharing video and audio records of the witness’ examinations.
During the trial， key witnesses， including Xu Ming， Wang Zhenggang， former head of the Dalian Municipal Bureau of Urban and Rural Planning and Land， and Wang Lijun， appeared to testify in court.
The prosecution and defense cross-examined the witnesses and gave their views on the evidence presented. Bo did not acknowledge the charges against him. He frequently defended himself by saying the evidence was “irrelevant”or that he had only a vague impression of the events， but failed to offer evidence that could be used to refute the accusations during his defense.
Before the trial， Bo made a handwritten testimony confessing that he had in fact accepted money from Tang Xiaolin.
While in court， Bo claimed that he was put under pressure when writing his confession and raised the question of whether or not the testimonies from witnesses called against him had been made under similar conditions. His defense team asserted that his handwritten confession contradicted Bo’s claims in court and that it was false. They put forward the claim that the confession should be excluded as illegal.
Prosecutors said that the evidence presented in court was authentic and obtained legally from the sources used and that the evidence brought to light across the duration of the investigation was enough to identify the defendant’s conduct as being criminal. According to prosecutors， Bo had written the confession alone and nobody was in his presence at the time of writing.
The court investigation phase lasted for a total of four days and concluded on August 25.
On August 26， prosecutors summarized their case and demanded a heavy sentence for Bo.
They said that the evidence presented and cross-examinations both demonstrated clearly the true nature of Bo’s conduct and that the evidence was sufficient to charge him with the crimes. They also pointed out that the investigation and conclusions were based on evidence presented and that any attempts to deny the crimes were in vain.
In response， Bo made a 90-minute statement denying the charges. He insisted that he was not aware of or involved in any of the crimes， and he questioned the credibility of the witness testimonies. His defense team expressed their opinions concerning the motives of the defendant， the credibility of evidence and validity of collection.
“The court will carefully and comprehensively review the evidence in order to fully consider the case from both sides and make a judgment based on the facts presented and the law，” said a court spokesman after the trial.
The verdict will be announced at a date yet to be decided.
Progress in transparency
The trial of Bo saw an attendance of more than 100 people， including his relatives. For the entire duration of the trial， the Jinan Intermediate People’s Court used Sina Weibo， a popular Twitter-like micro-blogging service， to deliver a running account of court proceedings. On account of the trial， the number of followers of the court’s microblog saw a sixty-fold increase from 10，000 on August 22 to almost 600，000 by August 28. The court also arranged a media lobby at a nearby hotel to provide a live feed of trial details to reporters.
“This is the first time details of a former senior Chinese official’s trial have been released to the public in real-time . In the past， such trials took place behind closed doors， with details being released only after sentencing，” said Li Zhuang， a lawyer in Beijing.
Li said that open trials of officials like Bo mark great progress in China’s judicial system and serve as a serious warning that those violating the law should not deceive themselves into believing that they can evade legal punishment through good luck.
“The decision to share court proceedings through micro-blogging came as a direct response to claims against the transparency and legitimacy of China’s political and legal systems. For the public， it was also a vivid lesson on how the rule of law must be respected，” Li said.
Wang Peng， an editor with Shandong Electronic Audio and Video Publishing House， observed the trial.
“Sitting in the courtroom， I learnt many of the case’s details，” he said. “I believe the court will make a fair judgment.”
Liu Bingjun， Dean of the Law School of Shandong University of Political Science and Law， said that the trial and pre-trial procedures showcased the openness and fairness of the justice system.
“The whole trial followed strict legal procedures. The prosecution and defense were both given the full opportunities necessary to express their opinions，” said Liu， who also attended the trial.
An article on bbc.co.uk said the broadcasts were “an unprecedented display of transparency for a trial in China， and therefore drew massive attention from the Chinese public.”
A commentary on the website of the Ta Kung Pao newspaper in Hong Kong said that there is a need to meet demand for information to lead public opinion rather than allow true and fake news to mingle together on microblogging sites.
Pledge against corruption
“The court is using new media for timely and accurate disclosure of events from the trial through transcripts and pictures. This greatly satisfies concerns the general public have in regards to Bo’s case and also indicates the new central leadership’s confidence in its governance， the rule of law and its anti-graft crackdowns，” said an article written by Yang Fei on Guangming Daily’s website. After assuming office in November 2012， the new CPC leadership has paid great attention to fighting corruption， calling on the whole Party to stay on full alert， as corruption is a threat to its survival.
Earlier in August， former Minister of Railways Liu Zhijun was given a suspended death penalty for bribery and abuse of power. Liu’s sentence followed the recent sacking and investigation of several senior officials for suspected violations of law and disciplines.
At a plenary meeting of the CPC’s Central Commission for Discipline Inspection in January， Xi Jinping， General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee， pledged to unflinchingly fight against corruption and keep power reined within a “cage of regulations.”
Disciplinary， preventive and guarantee mechanisms should be set up to ensure that people do not dare to， and are also not able to commit acts of corruption， Xi said.
On August 27， at a meeting presided over by Xi， the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee approved a plan for 2013-17 that deals with improving the system for disciplining officials involved in corruption and preventing others from being involved.
For the CPC， building a system to fight corruption is a “major political task” and combating it is a responsibility that society shares as a whole， said a statement issued after the meeting.
The exercise of power by officials must be checked and supervised so as to create a system where officials dare not be corrupt and corruption will be stopped in its tracks， the statement added.