Nicolas Sarkozy to Pen Jail Diary Detailing Two Dozen Days In Custody
Nicolas Sarkozy is preparing a personal account in the coming weeks called Diary of a Prisoner, detailing his time spent in custody.
The announcement came less than two weeks following the ex-leader was released as he appeals the court ruling related to illegal collaboration connected to efforts to secure election campaign funds linked to the government of Muammar Gaddafi.
Prison Experience: Personal Reflections
“Behind bars there is nothing to see, with little to occupy time,” he writes in a preview, indicating the memoir centers around his musings while in seclusion rather than a broader observation on the overcrowded and troubled jail system in France.
“I forget silence, not present in La Santé, where there is constant sound,” he states. “The din is alas constant. Yet, similar to barren lands, personal reflection grows stronger while incarcerated.”
Freedom Plea: Describing the Ordeal
During his plea for freedom, Sarkozy participated via screen from a room in prison, depicting prison life as exhausting. He stated to the judge: “I wish to commend to all the prison staff, showing great humanity, easing this nightmare manageable – because it is a nightmare.”
“I never imagined that at 70 years of age, I’d find myself behind bars. It’s a hardship forced upon me. I admit it’s difficult, it’s very hard. It has an impact every inmate because it’s gruelling.”
Unprecedented Situation
The former president, who led the nation for a five-year term, became the inaugural ex-leader of an EU country and the first leader since WWII in the French Republic to be incarcerated.
Ahead of his incarceration he declared he planned to utilize the opportunity to write a book.
Books in Prison
It is not certain whether he had time to review and analyze the texts he took into prison: a biography of Jesus in two parts and Alexandre Dumas’s novel The Count of Monte Cristo, where an innocent man is imprisoned later flees to take revenge.
Daily Reality
Sarkozy was held in solitary confinement for his own security in a cell of about nine sq metres including private facilities in the Paris jail in the city. Security personnel stayed in an adjacent room.
It was stated that he had eaten solely dairy snacks while inside because he feared meals provided may have been contaminated. Options were available to prepare his own meals but refused this, based on unnamed sources. It is uncertain whether Sarkozy will write about what he ate in prison.
Legal Perspective
His attorney, Christophe Ingrain daily during the incarceration, stated during proceedings security would be better released rather than in custody. “There were death threats, listened to yells after dark and the urgent intervention in an adjacent room as a detainee harmed themselves.”
Case Background
Sarkozy went to prison last month following a French court gave him five years in prison on conspiracy charges related to a plan to acquire campaign funds during his election campaign.
He disputes the charges challenging the decision, and a fresh trial is scheduled for early next year.
