🔗 Share this article The Former French President to Pen Jail Diary Chronicling His 20 Days In Custody Nicolas Sarkozy will soon publish a memoir this autumn named A Prisoner’s Diary, which recounts his time spent in custody. The announcement came shortly after Sarkozy was released while he contests the court ruling on charges of criminal conspiracy regarding a scheme to acquire election campaign funds linked to the regime of Muammar Gaddafi. Prison Experience: Personal Reflections “Behind bars visibility is limited, and nothing to do,” he writes in a preview, suggesting the book centers around his musings from seclusion as opposed to extensive analysis regarding the packed and struggling correctional facilities in the country. “Quiet is absent, which is missing at the prison, where one hears constant sound,” he continues. “The din persists relentlessly. But, just like the desert, inner life is fortified while incarcerated.” Freedom Plea: Describing the Ordeal While appealing for release, the former leader had appeared via screen from inside the facility, describing his time inside as draining. He had told the court: “I must acknowledge the correctional officers, who are exceptionally humane, and who helped make this ordeal tolerable – because it is a nightmare.” “It never crossed my mind that in my seventies, I’d be in prison. It’s a hardship that has been imposed on me. It’s challenging, I acknowledge, extremely tough. It has an impact every inmate as it’s exhausting.” Historical Context The former president, the ex-head of state for a five-year term, set a precedent as former head of an EU country and the initial post-WWII figure of France to serve time in prison. Prior to imprisonment he declared he intended to spend the period to write a book. Cell Library It is not certain whether he had time to read and critique the volumes he took into prison: a two-volume biography of Jesus together with Dumas’s work The Count of Monte Cristo, a plot where a blameless person is sentenced to jail then breaks out to seek vengeance. Daily Reality The former leader was held in isolation due to safety concerns in a cell of about nine sq metres featuring a personal bathroom at La Santé prison in the city. Guards were stationed in a neighbouring cell. It was stated his diet consisted only yoghurts while inside worried that prison cuisine may have been contaminated. Although he had access for self-catering but refused this, as per accounts. Not known is if the memoir includes his dietary choices. Legal Perspective His attorney, who visited his client every day while he was in prison, told the release hearing security would be better released rather than in custody. “He has faced death threats, heard shouts after dark plus rapid actions in a neighbouring cell when a prisoner self-harmed.” Legal Proceedings He entered custody on 21 October following the judiciary imposed five years in prison for criminal conspiracy over a scheme to secure campaign funds for his 2007 presidential race. He denies wrongdoing challenging the decision, and a fresh trial is scheduled for next spring.