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Nicolas Sarkozy is preparing a memoir this autumn called A Prisoner’s Diary, which recounts his experience spent behind bars.

This news emerged shortly following Sarkozy gained freedom while he contests the court ruling on charges of criminal conspiracy in a case to secure political financing linked to the leadership of former Libyan leader.

Time in Custody: Inner Thoughts

“Inside jail one sees little, and nothing to do,” he notes in one passage, indicating the account centers around his thoughts while in solitary confinement as opposed to wider commentary regarding the packed and struggling jail system in France.

“Quiet is absent, not present in La Santé, where there is a lot to hear,” he continues. “The noise is alas constant. However, akin to empty spaces, one’s inner world is fortified while incarcerated.”

Court Appearance: Describing the Ordeal

At his release request hearing, Sarkozy had appeared 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, displaying remarkable compassion, easing this nightmare manageable – as it truly is one.”

“I never imagined that in my seventies, I’d find myself behind bars. It’s an ordeal that has been imposed on me. I admit it’s difficult, it’s very hard. It leaves a mark all who experience it because it’s gruelling.”

Historical Context

He, who led the nation from 2007 to 2012, became the inaugural ex-leader from the EU and the first leader since WWII from France to be incarcerated.

Ahead of his incarceration he declared he planned to utilize the opportunity for authoring a memoir.

Reading Material

Unconfirmed is whether he had time to review and analyze the texts he brought with him: a life story of Jesus spanning two books plus the novel by Dumas the famous story, where a blameless person is sentenced to jail but escapes to seek vengeance.

Life in Confinement

Sarkozy was placed secluded for his own security in a room approximately nine square meters featuring a personal bathroom in the Paris jail in the city. Two bodyguards occupied an adjacent room.

Sources mentioned his diet consisted just yogurt in prison because he feared any food could have been tampered with. He had facilities to prepare his own meals yet he declined, according to reports. Not known is if he will detail his dietary choices.

Lawyer’s Statements

Sarkozy’s lawyer, who saw him regularly each day during the incarceration, stated during proceedings he would be safer outside jail rather than in custody. “He received death threats, has heard screaming during nighttime and the urgent intervention in an adjacent room when a prisoner self-harmed.”

Charges and Sentence

His incarceration began last month following the judiciary imposed a half-decade term for illegal collaboration related to a plan to obtain campaign funds for his presidential bid.

He maintains his innocence and has appealed against the verdict, and a fresh trial set for the coming spring.