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Photo taken on Aug. 26, 2013 shows the court trial of Bo Xilai (C, front) at Jinan Intermediate People's Court in Jinan, capital of east China's Shandong Province.[Xinhua]

The trial of Bo Xilai, charged with bribery, embezzlement and abuse of power, concluded Monday at Jinan Intermediate People's Court, after hearings from Aug. 22 to Aug. 26.

The verdict will be announced at a date yet to be decided.

At the trial, prosecutors demanded a heavy sentence for Bo while the defendant denied the charges.

In his final statement, Bo said he made serious errors of judgement when handling the defection of Wang Lijun, former vice mayor and police chief of Chongqing.

"Wang's defection caused vile impacts at home and abroad and undermined the image of the Party and country," he said. "I am deeply ashamed and filled with regret, but I did not intend to misuse my power."

He also denied the bribery and embezzlement charges against him. "The charges are not true. My mistake, which was serious, was that I did not discipline my family and subordinates."

"I know I am not a perfect person. I had a strong ego and bad temper. I made serious mistakes," he said. "I sincerely admit that my failure to manage my family had a negative effect on the country."

"I sincerely accept the investigation from the party and the judicial departments," he said.

Over the past 16 months, the staffers who took charge of his case took care of his life, he said.

"They talked with me in a civilized way and most of them were professional, though of course, I have been under pressure during the process," he said.

"During the trial, both prosecution and defense sides had opportunities to fully express their opinions. Also, the court released trial transcripts through microblog. All of these have made me more confident of the future of China's judicial system," he said.

Bo's trial began on the morning of Aug. 22 in the largest courtroom of Jinan Intermediate People's Court.

More than 100 people, including Bo's family and relatives, deputies to people's congresses, political advisors, ordinary citizens and journalists observed the trial.

The moment after Bo, escorted by marshals, walked into the defendant's seat, he stopped and turned around, casting a glance at the observers' seats.

Bo, 64, is former secretary of the Chongqing Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and a former member of the CPC Central Committee Political Bureau.

Bo's resume also includes the mayor and party chief of Dalian in northeast China's Liaoning Province, member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Liaoning Provincial Committee and deputy secretary, governor of Liaoning and minister of commerce.

 

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