Sarkozy reports from cell 11 – book describes imprisonment

Sarkozy’s book is characterized by the indignation that he could end up behind bars at all, a “descent of ten levels in one fell swoop”, and the firm conviction of his innocence. But what did his cell look like?

Mattress harder than in the army

“Twelve square meters. A bed securely attached to the wall with reinforced panels. A small desk made of light wood, a shower, a refrigerator, a stove and a television. All in one room.” There were also two windows, but no view outside or of the sky. “When I sat down on the bed, which was unmade, I was shocked. I had never felt such a hard mattress, even during my military service.”

The conservative ex-president was quartered in a particularly secure area. “My future neighbors are either Islamist terrorists, rapists, murderers or drug dealers. An attractive prospect,” Sarkozy stated before going into the cell. The constant, loud violence among the prisoners regularly robbed him of sleep. “Some of my new neighbors did not seem to have optimal mental balance,” Sarkozy wrote in his 200-page book.

“Sarko” watches the PSG game behind bars

Sarkozy described the visit of his wife Carla Bruni as the “only bright spot on this dark day.” But the fact that he was able to watch the Paris Saint-Germain game against Leverkusen in his cell also cheered up “Sarko”, who often sits in the stands at PSG games.

In his book, Sarkozy also spends many pages dealing with the Libya affair and the trial against him – from his point of view, the judiciary for years persisted in accusing the then Libyan ruler Muammar Gaddafi of illegal money for his 2007 presidential election campaign without any solid evidence.

Conservatives consider firewall to be outdated

Meanwhile, a statement by Sarkozy, whose voice continues to have weight in the conservative camp, is causing a political stir in France. In his book, he advocates abandoning the firewall against Marine Le Pen’s right-wing National Rally (RN) in France. “They represent so many French people, respect the election results and participate in the functioning of our democracy. Taking them into account seems to me as natural as it is necessary.”