The Former French President to Pen Prison Memoir Chronicling His 20 Days Behind Bars
Nicolas Sarkozy plans a personal account this autumn named Diary of a Prisoner, detailing the period served behind bars.
The revelation was made shortly following the former president was released while he appeals his conviction on charges of unlawful coordination connected to efforts to obtain presidential race money provided by the regime of former Libyan leader.
Time in Custody: Solitary Musings
“Inside jail one sees little, with little to occupy time,” he writes in a preview, indicating the memoir centers around his thoughts while in solitary confinement rather than extensive analysis of the overcrowded and struggling French prison system.
“Silence escapes me, which doesn’t exist in that facility, where noise is endless commotion,” he adds. “The noise unfortunately never stops. But, just like the desert, one’s inner world is fortified behind bars.”
Court Appearance: Describing the Ordeal
While appealing for release, Sarkozy participated by video link from a room in prison, characterizing his incarceration as gruelling. He stated to the judge: “I want to pay tribute to all the prison staff, showing great humanity, and who helped make this nightmare tolerable – because it is a nightmare.”
“I didn’t expect at this stage of life, I would end up incarcerated. It’s a trial I must endure. I admit it’s difficult, it’s very hard. It leaves a mark all who experience it because it’s gruelling.”
Unprecedented Situation
The former president, the ex-head of state between 2007 and 2012, set a precedent as past president from the EU and the first postwar leader of France to be incarcerated.
Ahead of his incarceration he declared he planned to utilize the opportunity to write a book.
Reading Material
Unconfirmed is did he manage to go through the volumes he took into prison: a biography of Jesus in two parts together with Dumas’s work the famous story, in which a blameless person is sentenced to jail then breaks out to take revenge.
Daily Reality
He remained in solitary confinement due to safety concerns in a space of about nine sq metres with his own shower and toilet at La Santé prison in Paris. Security personnel stayed in the next cell.
Sources mentioned that he had eaten only yoghurts while inside worried that meals provided may have been contaminated. Options were available for self-catering but he turned this down, as per accounts. Unclear remains if he will detail his dietary choices.
Defense Viewpoint
The legal representative, Christophe Ingrain each day while he was in prison, told the release hearing he would be safer out of prison compared to inside. “There were menacing messages, heard shouts at night and emergency responses in a neighbouring cell when a prisoner self-harmed.”
Case Background
His incarceration began last month when a Paris court imposed five years in prison for illegal collaboration related to a plan to obtain campaign funds for his presidential bid.
He maintains his innocence and is contesting the ruling, with a new trial planned for early next year.