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国外观点：

Chinese justice  Punishing the powerful
An ex-leader’s wife receives a suspended death sentence for murder


SHOW trials are not what they were. In 1980 Chinese television viewers were transfixed by the outbursts of Mao Zedong’s unrepentant widow, Jiang Qing, in nightly broadcasts of her appearance in a Beijing court.

On August 20th, in the most sensational trial since then of a member of one of China’s elite families, Gu Kailai, the wife of a deposed provincial leader, was found guilty of murder.

Like Madame Mao she was given a suspended death sentence. This time, however, nervous officials were at pains to keep publicity to a minimum. Today’s viewers (and tweeters) have too many difficult questions.

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Ms Gu, whose husband, Bo Xilai, was purged from the Politburo in April, is unlikely to be executed. Despite a fondness for capital punishment, the Communist Party rarely applies the death penalty to its own elite.

As with Madame Mao, Ms Gu’s sentence is likely to be commuted to life in prison. Jiang Qing was released on medical parole a decade after her trial (and within a few days was reported to have committed suicide).

Ms Gu, the court was told, suffers from depression and paranoia. She could be similarly freed in nine years, according to Dui Hua, an American NGO that monitors China’s legal processes.

In a trial that lasted only a day, Ms Gu admitted that she had plotted the murder of Neil Heywood, a British businessman with connections to the Bo family.

She apparently poisoned him with cyanide last November in a hotel room in Chongqing, the region of which her husband was then party chief.

Ms Gu said she believed that Mr Heywood was threatening her son, Bo Guagua, following a collapsed business deal. Ms Gu’s aide, Zhang Xiaojun, who admitted helping her carry out the murder, was given a nine-year prison sentence.

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Before and after

In Jiang Qing’s case, the authorities wanted to use her trial to make clear that the days of Maoist excess were over.

China’s leaders appear less keen today to highlight their intentions. Some of them are undoubtedly happy that Mr Bo has been discredited by association. His populism and ambition were seen as threatening the leadership’s stability.

But Mr Bo’s name was kept out of official reports of the trial, as was any accusation of economic wrongdoing by his family. News of the case was played down in the media.

China’s leaders, it appears, worry that a more open assault on Mr Bo would draw public attention to high-level corruption while also antagonising his sympathisers.

There are still many of these, including within the elite. Even to Mr Bo’s critics, the trial of Ms Gu has not given much cheer.

Many of China’s ever-vocal microbloggers have accused the authorities of letting her off too lightly. Some have even suggested that the woman who appeared in court was a lookalike (at her trial Ms Gu did appear plumper than in earlier photos).

Questions have also been raised about oddities in the prosecution’s case, including the alleged threat to Ms Gu’s son. Officials hoped the trial would show a commitment to the rule of law. It appears to have aroused little more than cynicism.

活着是一种幸福

今天上午，四川省成都市中级人民法院对重庆市原副市长、公安局原局长王立军徇私枉法、叛逃、滥用职权、受贿案作出一审宣判。
对王立军以徇私枉法罪判处有期徒刑7年，以叛逃罪判处有期徒刑2年，剥夺政治权利1年，以滥用职权罪判处有期徒刑2年，以受贿罪判处有期徒刑9年，数罪并罚，决定执行有期徒刑15年，剥夺政治权利1年。
被告人王立军当庭表示不上诉。

2012年12月21日

BBC头版头条 关注薄熙来案件进展

2012年12月21日

Disgraced Chinese politician Bo Xilai has denied one of the bribery allegations against him, as he went on trial in Jinan.
The former Chongqing Communist Party leader is accused of accepting money from two businessmen, the court said.
He also faces charges of corruption and abuse of power, the latter relating to his wife's role in the murder of a British businessman, the court said.


薄熙来否认了一项受贿指控。他将会被指控贪污、受贿、滥用职权。她的妻子被控谋杀。

2012年12月21日

人民网北京8月22日电 薄熙来受贿、贪污、滥用职权案今天上午在济南市中级人民法院一审公开开庭审理。据济南中院官方微博发布的文字实录，审判长表示，鉴于本案指控的事实较为复杂，法庭将分别对公诉机关指控被告人的主体身份、受贿、贪污、滥用职权以及本案案发和涉案款物扣押冻结情况这五个方面的案件事实进行调查。
公诉人称，起诉书指控被告人薄熙来犯受贿罪、贪污罪、滥用职权罪是根据大量的证据得出的结论。在法庭审理中，公诉人将按指控犯罪、证明犯罪的要求将证据分组向法庭出示，这些证据均由检察机关依法取得，在庭前公诉人依法对证据进行了认真地审查，确认合法有效。

2012年12月21日

Two years ago the 64-year-old high-flier was seen as a candidate for promotion to the Politburo Standing Committee, China's seven-member top decision-making body.
But in February 2012, as China prepared for its once-in-a-decade leadership handover, questions emerged over the death of the British businessman, Neil Heywood.


2年前薄熙来还在准备竞选中央政治局常委，中国7人决策团队。
但是2012年2月，在中国10年一次的换届选举中，关于一个英国人死亡的消息浮出水面。

2012年12月21日

"I hope the judge will try this case fairly and justly according to the law of the country," Mr Bo reportedly said.
Five of Mr Bo's relatives are said to be in court, along with 19 journalists and 84 other people. Foreign journalists have not been allowed in.
According to the indictment posted by the court, Mr Bo is accused of receiving bribes totalling 21.8m yuan ($3.56m; £2.28m) from two Dalian-based businessmen.
The court microblog quoted Mr Bo as saying about one of the cases: "That Tang Xiaolin gave me three bribes - that did not happen. He asked me to help him sort out something, and these were all done according to procedure."

2012年12月21日

2012年12月21日 发表于 2013-8-22 17:13
"I hope the judge will try this case fairly and justly according to the law of the country," Mr Bo r ...

说实在的，每次看BBC，CNN的报道都很客观，只是单纯描述事件，没有抹黑，当然也没有歌颂。