🔗 Share this article

The ex-president of France is preparing a personal account next month called Notes from a Cell, chronicling the period endured in jail.

The announcement came shortly after the former president was released as his appeal proceeds the court ruling on charges of unlawful coordination in a case to secure political financing from the leadership of former Libyan leader.

Life Behind Bars: Solitary Musings

“Behind bars visibility is limited, and activities are scarce,” he writes in a preview, implying the book centers around his thoughts while in solitary confinement instead of extensive analysis regarding the strained and crisis-hit correctional facilities in the country.

“I forget silence, not present at the prison, where noise is endless commotion,” he states. “The racket persists relentlessly. But, just like the desert, inner life is strengthened in prison.”

Release Hearing: Describing the Ordeal

While appealing for release, the former leader participated via screen from inside the facility, describing his time inside as gruelling. He stated to the judge: “I must acknowledge the correctional officers, displaying remarkable compassion, easing this ordeal bearable – as it truly is one.”

“It never crossed my mind that in my seventies, I would end up incarcerated. It’s a hardship forced upon me. I admit it’s difficult, extremely tough. It affects one every inmate due to its intensity.”

Unprecedented Situation

The former president, the ex-head of state between 2007 and 2012, set a precedent as former head from the EU and the initial post-WWII figure of France to serve time in prison.

Ahead of his incarceration he mentioned he would use his time to write a book.

Books in Prison

It remains unclear whether he had time to read and critique the texts he took into prison: a life story of Jesus spanning two books and Alexandre Dumas’s novel the famous story, in which a blameless person is sentenced to jail but escapes to exact retribution.

Prison Conditions

He was held in isolation for his own security in a room roughly 100 square feet with his own shower and toilet in the Paris jail located in the capital. Guards occupied a neighbouring cell.

It was stated that he had eaten just yogurt in prison because he feared meals provided could have been tampered with. Options were available for self-catering yet he declined, based on unnamed sources. Not known is whether Sarkozy will write about meals during incarceration.

Lawyer’s Statements

Sarkozy’s lawyer, who saw him regularly every day throughout the jail term, informed the court he would be safer out of prison rather than in custody. “There were menacing messages, heard shouts after dark plus rapid actions in an adjacent room during an inmate’s self-injury.”

Legal Proceedings

His incarceration began last month after the judiciary imposed a five-year sentence for illegal collaboration over a scheme to acquire campaign funds for his presidential bid.

He maintains his innocence challenging the decision, and another court case set for the coming spring.