🔗 Share this article Nicolas Sarkozy Set to Write Prison Memoir Chronicling His 20 Days Behind Bars Nicolas Sarkozy plans a memoir next month titled Diary of a Prisoner, detailing the period served behind bars. The announcement came just 11 days after Sarkozy gained freedom as he contests the guilty verdict on charges of illegal collaboration connected to efforts to acquire political financing from the regime of Muammar Gaddafi. Time in Custody: Personal Reflections “In prison one sees little, and nothing to do,” he reflects in one passage, implying the account will focus on his musings during seclusion rather than wider commentary regarding the strained and troubled jail system in France. “Silence escapes me, which is missing in that facility, where there is endless commotion,” he states. “The din persists relentlessly. Yet, similar to barren lands, one’s inner world grows stronger in prison.” Court Appearance: Recounting the Hardship While appealing for release, the former leader was present via screen from a room in prison, describing his time inside as draining. He expressed in court: “I must acknowledge to all the prison staff, who are exceptionally humane, and who have made this ordeal tolerable – since it’s deeply troubling.” “I never imagined that at 70 years of age, I would end up incarcerated. It’s a trial forced upon me. It’s challenging, I acknowledge, it’s very hard. It leaves a mark all who experience it because it’s gruelling.” Unprecedented Situation Sarkozy, who served as France’s president for a five-year term, set a precedent as ex-leader of an EU country and the initial post-WWII figure of France to serve time in prison. Prior to imprisonment he mentioned he intended to spend the period to write a book. Books in Prison It remains unclear if he found the opportunity to review and analyze the texts he brought with him: a life story of Jesus spanning two books together with Dumas’s work the classic tale, a plot where an innocent man ends up incarcerated later flees to exact retribution. Life in Confinement The former leader was held in solitary confinement to protect him in a cell roughly 100 square feet featuring a personal bathroom in the Paris jail in the city. Security personnel were stationed in the next cell. It was stated that he had eaten solely dairy snacks in prison worried that meals provided may have been contaminated. Although he had access for self-catering but refused this, according to reports. It is uncertain if he will detail his dietary choices. Defense Viewpoint His attorney, who visited his client each day while he was in prison, told the release hearing security would be better out of prison compared to inside. “There were death threats, heard shouts after dark and emergency responses next door as a detainee harmed themselves.” Case Background Sarkozy went to prison in late October after the judiciary imposed a half-decade term on conspiracy charges over a scheme to obtain campaign funds for his 2007 presidential race. He disputes the charges and is contesting the ruling, with a new trial planned for next spring.