It was the culmination of a colourful career: a life sentence for the disgraced Chinese leader Bo Xilai on counts of bribery, corruption and abuse of power.
China sought to turn the page on the country's biggest political scandal in decades yesterday, when a court in Jinan announced its judgment on the former Chongqing party boss and politburo member. His conviction, on charges that included interfering with the investigation into his wife's killing of a British businessman, was a foregone conclusion, given the party's tight control of the legal system.
The relatively tough sentence was probably prompted by the cocksure defence he mounted in his five-day trial, said analysts; initially, they had predicted he would face 15 to 20 years in jail.
A photo released by officials showed Bo smiling as he stood handcuffed before the judges. But the ruling satisfied neither supporters nor critics, since both believed the case avoided the real issues at stake. It was "a political trial … that failed to provide due process to Bo, failed to provide justice to his victims, and failed to provide the truth about his abuses of power to the Chinese public", wrote Nicholas Bequelin of Human Rights Watch.
The judges said the 64-year-old had "gravely damaged the country and the people's interests" as they gave him a life sentence for bribery, 15 years for embezzlement and seven years for abuse of power, to run concurrently. The ruling also deprived him of political rights for life. He has 10 days to appeal, although any appeal would be highly unlikely to change the outcome. "He will definitely appeal … [The verdict] is entirely unjustified," said Gu Yushu, a lawyer appointed by Bo's sister but not permitted to represent the politician. The difference between a life sentence and lengthy set term was more symbolic than substantive, given the possibility of parole, said one analyst.
Judges said Bo embezzled 5m yuan (£500,000) and received more than 20m yuan in bribes from two businessmen. They rejected his defence that he did not know about gifts, including a French villa. And the authorities provided unusual detail of last month's hearings, issuing transcripts which revealed his spirited challenge to the prosecution case. "Not even the worst TV scriptwriter would come up with something like this," he remarked at one point.
The scandal was triggered by Bo's row with his police chief, Wang Lijun, who accused Bo's wife of murdering Neil Heywood. Gu Kailai was convicted and jailed for the killing last year.
Although no one could have foreseen the spectacular manner of Bo's fall, it had become clear that rivals and enemies were keen to contain him as the party prepared for the handover of power to a new generation led by Xi Jinping, who was appointed Chinese leader in March.
"Bo was a powerful advocate … he was charismatic and was very definitely – in the post-Deng Xiaoping era – behaving contrary to the normal way," said Roderick Macfarquhar, an expert on Chinese politics at Harvard University. "I think it's quite possible that he would have taken advantage of any splits in the politburo standing committee to edge Xi aside."
Perhaps it was Bo's background as the son of the communist "immortal" Bo Yibo that gave him the confidence and connections to do things differently. His father was purged when the Cultural Revolution started in 1966; his mother died in the custody of Red Guards and Bo and his brothers were sent to a prison camp. But like the children of other senior leaders, he was rapidly rehabilitated and rose quickly through official ranks after university.
To enthusiasts, particularly on the left, he was a visionary, speaking to a public who felt left behind by China's economic boom. In Dalian, where he was mayor, and later in Chongqing, he was genuinely popular, lauded as a leader who got things done and who understood ordinary people's concerns.
To sceptics, he was prone to expensive gimmicks that racked up debt, his concern for the disadvantaged seen as superficial and opportunist. "Some people were cheated by his tricks," said retired official Fang Hong, who spent a year in a labour camp after posting a scatological poem mocking Bo online. "He made Chongqing regress at least 20 years politically and economically … [His] debt will not be paid by the government, but citizens."
He was also ruthless. His brutal drive against organised crime was pitched for popular appeal, but rode roughshod over legal procedures and targeted those who might have posed an obstacle to him. Even the lawyer of an alleged mob boss was jailed for falsifying evidence.
Some say the judgment has ended Bo's political life but wonder if he has hopes his son Guagua will one day inherit the family mantle. Some think it just possible Bo himself could re-emerge as a significant force. "As long as he is alive there is a very small chance that he might reappear at some stage … not being rehabilitated by the establishment, but if the system should get into trouble down the line," said Steve Tsang, professor of contemporary Chinese studies at Nottingham University.
In China, figures from left and right see another legacy. They argue that Xi Jinping has borrowed Bo's politically neo-Maoist playbook since becoming leader, citing initiatives such as the "mass line" rectification campaign to purify the party. "The chance that Bo returns to politics as a candidate for the leadership is zero," said Cheng Li, of the Brookings Institution, before the sentencing. "But he will remain as a factor that may shape the political trajectory of the country in the years to come."
Additional research by Cecily Huang
Das Obere Volksgericht der Provinz Shandong in Jinan hat am Freitag (25.10.) die Berufung gegen das Urteil gegen Bo Xilai, einen ehemaligen führenden chinesischen Politiker, abgelehnt. Das Mittlere Volksgericht hatte Bo im letzten Monat zu einer lebenslangen Freiheitsstrafe, dem Verlust der politischen Rechte auf Lebenszeit sowie zur Einziehung seines Vermögens verurteilt. In diesem Urteil wurden die Strafen wegen Bestechlichkeit (lebenslange Freiheitsstrafe, Entzug der politischen Rechte auf Lebenszeit und Einziehung des Privatvermögens), die Strafe wegen Verschwendung öffentlicher Gelder (15 Jahre Haft und eine Million Yuan Geldstrafe) sowie die Strafe wegen Amtsmissbrauchs (7 Jahre Gefängnis) zusammengefasst. Beobachter hatten ursprünglich mit einer Freiheitsstrafe zwischen 15 und 20 Jahren gerechnet. Bo legte sofort Berufung gegen das Urteil ein.

Beim Oberen Volksgericht hat nun ein Richterkollegium die Videoaufnahmen des ersten Prozesses, alle Beweismittel und Aussagen nochmals untersucht und auch die Prozessbeteiligten noch einmal persönlich gehört. Das Gericht entschied nun, dass es sich bei Bos Fall um einen besonders schweren Fall mit großen Schäden für Volk und Staat handele, und bestätigte das Urteil des unteren Gerichts auf der Grundlage von Punkt 1 Absatz 1 des §225 des chinesischen Strafprozessrechtes.

Bo hatte eine sehr engerische Verteidigungstaktik voller überraschender Wendungen betrieben, die Vorwürfe bestritten und frühere Teilgeständnisse vor Gericht als unter Zwang erpresst zurückgezogen. Darauf führen Beobachter die Härte des Urteils, das das härteste gegen einen führenden chinesischen Politier seit der Verurteilung von Maos Witwe Jiang Qing 1981 ist, zurück. Bo hat sich nicht an die Spielregeln eines Schauprozesses gehalten, als der dieses Verfahren gelten darf, er hat keine Reue gezeigt und - ganz im Gegenteil - die Aufmerksamkeit der Medien und der Öffentlichkeit erneut für sich zu nutzen versucht. So einen Verstoß gegen die Regeln muss man mit besonderer Härte bestrafen, auch wenn der Unterschied zwischen einer lebenslangen und einer sehr langen begrenzten Freihheitsstrafe für einen 64-jährigen Mann nur gering erscheint, hätte letztere immerhin noch die Möglichkeit der Aussetzung der Strafe zur Bewährung nach einer gewissen Zeit sehr wahrscheinlich werden lassen. Aber auch weil er der Bevölkerung von Chongqing, wo er seine lokale Machtbasis hatte, letztendlich mit seinen Handlungen geschadet habe, wie geurteilt wird, wird von manchen das Urteil als angemessen beurteilt. Andere hingegen verweisen auf Bos ungewöhnlichen Politikstil, der ihm großen Rückhalt in der Bevölkerung einbrachte, so dass seine Entmachtung gerade im Zusammenspiel mit dem Parteitag der KP Chinas im letzten Jahr, als einer der seltenen Wechsel der Führungsspitze in Partei und Staat vollzogen wurde, nur auf diesem Wege möglich gewesen sei, da er Spannungen und Spaltungen innerhalb der Parteispitze dort hätte für sich ausnützen können.

Dass mit dem Gerichtsurteil Bos persönliche Karriere als beendet gelten darf, wird von kaum jemandem bestritten, obwohl Chinas Politik als sehr unberechenbar gilt. Aber wenn nicht er, dann steigt vielleicht sein Sohn in die Politik ein und setzt fort, was sein Vater einst begonnen hat. Es ist jedoch auch möglich, bereits in der gegenwärtigen Politik von Xi Xiping, der die Partei zum Studium der „Linie der Massen“, um sie zu reinigen, anhält, eine Fortsetzung der neo-maoistischen Politik Bos zu sehen. Bo selbst stehen nach dem Urteil des Oberen Gerichts von Shandong keine rechtlichen Mittel zur Verfügung, gegen das Urteil vorzugehen, da nur eine Todesstrafe vom höchsten Gericht Chinas überprüft werden könnte.