Former Chinese political advisor stands trial for graft

Sun Shanwu, former vice chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) Henan Provincial Committee, went on trial Monday on corruption charges.

Sun, 63, is charged with abusing his authority, enabling profits for others, and taking huge bribes when he served as vice chairman of the CPPCC Henan Provincial Committee and secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Luoyang municipal committee.

At Weifang Intermediate People's Court, Shandong Province, Sun was accused of taking more than 9.1 million yuan (1.33 million U.S. dollars) in bribes in person and through his relatives from nine sources.

The CPC's internal anti-graft body, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI), said in a statement in December 2008 that Sun was among 4,960 government and Party officials above county-level who were investigated and penalized for graft from November 2007 to November 2008.

Source: Xinhua