Relatives view the remains of hostage-taker Rolando Mendoza prior to his burial at Tanauan in Batangas province, south of Manila. (Bullit Marquez/Associated Press)

Weeping relatives and friends on Saturday buried a dismissed Philippine policeman who seized a busload of Hong Kong tourists in an incident that ended with eight of his hostages dead.

Meanwhile, a Toronto-area teen injured in the shooting remained in a medically induced coma.

About 1,000 people joined the funeral procession for Rolando Mendoza under a blazing afternoon sun in his hometown of Tanauan, south of Manila. Many wept and Mendoza's widow wailed loudly as pallbearers carried his white casket out of a church, his body dressed in his police uniform.

Mendoza, 55, was a decorated officer once cited as among the 10 most outstanding policemen in the Philippines. He was dismissed from the police force last year amid charges of extortion and threats.

"When he took hostages, all his decorations lost their meaning," Philippine National Police spokesman Agrimero Cruz said Friday.

Last Monday, armed with an M-16 assault rifle and a pistol, he seized a bus carrying 20 Hong Kong tourists, a tour guide and four Filipinos, and demanded his reinstatement. He released nine people early in the nearly 12-hour drama, but police said he shot the remaining hostages after negotiations broke down and police assaulted the bus.

Doctors in Hong Kong operated Friday on Canadian-born Jason Leung to remove part of his skull and insert a monitor to track swelling in his brain. Leung, 18, suffered a depressed skull fracture and was left in a coma.

Leung's father, Ken, 58, and two sisters, Doris, 21, and Jessie, 14, were among those killed.

President Benigno Aquino III has "begged for understanding" and ordered a thorough investigation. He also promised to punish those responsible.

China expressed indignation Friday after the Philippine flag was placed on Mendoza's coffin, saying he did not deserve the honour. Philippine officials denied allowing the flag to be draped on the coffin and a government employee went to Mendoza's residence, where a wake was held, and took the flag away Friday.

At Mendoza's funeral on Saturday his son, Bismark, also a policeman, tearfully saluted as his father's coffin was lowered into the grave. He had earlier apologized for his father's action and expressed hope that good relations with Hong Kong citizens could be cultivated.

"On behalf of my family, I feel very sorry for the loss of your countrymen," he told a group of Hong Kong journalists Thursday.

During the funeral service, Rev. Godofredo Mendoza, not related to the former officer, asked for prayers "for all who died" and that Mendoza "receive God's forgiveness."