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Nicolas Sarkozy is preparing a book this autumn titled Diary of a Prisoner, chronicling his experience spent in custody.

The revelation emerged shortly following the former president left prison as he contests the court ruling on charges of criminal conspiracy regarding a scheme to secure presidential race money linked to the regime of Muammar Gaddafi.

Life Behind Bars: Inner Thoughts

“In prison visibility is limited, with little to occupy time,” he writes in one passage, suggesting the account is more about his musings while in isolation instead of a broader observation regarding the overcrowded and troubled French prison system.

“Silence escapes me, which is missing in that facility, where one hears a lot to hear,” he continues. “The racket is alas constant. Yet, similar to barren lands, one’s inner world grows stronger behind bars.”

Release Hearing: Recounting the Hardship

While appealing for release, Sarkozy had appeared remotely from a room in prison, characterizing his incarceration as gruelling. He had told the court: “I want to pay tribute the correctional officers, who are exceptionally humane, and who have made this nightmare manageable – because it is a nightmare.”

“I didn’t expect at this stage of life, I’d find myself behind bars. It’s an ordeal forced upon me. I confess it’s hard, deeply straining. It has an impact on any prisoner because it’s gruelling.”

Unprecedented Situation

Sarkozy, the ex-head of state from 2007 to 2012, became the inaugural past president in the European Union and the initial post-WWII figure of France to experience jail.

Ahead of his incarceration he declared he intended to spend the period to compose an account.

Books in Prison

Unconfirmed is whether he had time to read and critique the three books he had in his cell: a two-volume biography of Jesus plus the novel by Dumas the classic tale, a plot where an innocent man is imprisoned later flees to seek vengeance.

Daily Reality

He was placed in isolation for his own security in a space roughly 100 square feet including private facilities in the Paris jail located in the capital. Security personnel stayed in an adjacent room.

Sources mentioned that he had eaten just yogurt during his stay worried that prison cuisine might have been spat on. Although he had access to cook for himself but he turned this down, based on unnamed sources. Unclear remains if the memoir includes meals during incarceration.

Defense Viewpoint

His attorney, who saw him regularly every day while he was in prison, stated during proceedings he would be safer released rather than in custody. “He received threats against his life, heard shouts during nighttime and emergency responses next door when a prisoner self-harmed.”

Legal Proceedings

His incarceration began in late October after the judiciary imposed a half-decade term on conspiracy charges in connection with efforts to acquire campaign funds for his presidential bid.

He denies wrongdoing and is contesting the ruling, with a new trial set for next spring.