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The ex-president of France is preparing a personal account next month titled A Prisoner’s Diary, detailing his time served in jail.

This news came just 11 days after the ex-leader left prison as he contests his conviction on charges of criminal conspiracy regarding a scheme to secure election campaign funds linked to the government of the late Libyan dictator.

Time in Custody: Solitary Musings

“Behind bars visibility is limited, and activities are scarce,” he notes in an extract, implying the memoir is more about his reflections from solitary confinement rather than wider commentary of the strained and struggling French prison system.

“I forget silence, which doesn’t exist at the prison, where one hears constant sound,” he continues. “The racket unfortunately never stops. Yet, similar to barren lands, personal reflection grows stronger behind bars.”

Freedom Plea: Sharing the Struggle

At his release request hearing, Sarkozy was present via screen from inside the facility, describing his time inside as exhausting. He stated to the judge: “I must acknowledge the correctional officers, who are exceptionally humane, easing this nightmare manageable – since it’s deeply troubling.”

“I never imagined that at 70 years of age, I’d find myself behind bars. It’s a hardship I must endure. It’s challenging, I acknowledge, it’s very hard. It has an impact on any prisoner due to its intensity.”

First of Its Kind

The former president, who served as France’s president between 2007 and 2012, became the inaugural past president of an EU country and the first postwar leader of France to be incarcerated.

Prior to imprisonment he had said he planned to utilize the opportunity for authoring a memoir.

Reading Material

Unconfirmed is did he manage to go through the three books he took into prison: a life story of Jesus spanning two books together with Dumas’s work the famous story, in which an innocent man is sentenced to jail then breaks out to exact retribution.

Life in Confinement

Sarkozy was placed in isolation for his own security in a room roughly 100 square feet featuring a personal bathroom at the correctional facility located in the capital. Two bodyguards occupied an adjacent room.

Reports indicated that he had eaten solely dairy snacks while inside due to concerns any food might have been spat on. Although he had access for self-catering but he turned this down, as per accounts. Not known is if he will detail his dietary choices.

Defense Viewpoint

His attorney, Christophe Ingrain every day during the incarceration, told the release hearing he would be safer outside jail compared to inside. “There were threats against his life, heard shouts after dark and the urgent intervention next door as a detainee harmed themselves.”

Charges and Sentence

Sarkozy went to prison in late October after a French court gave him a half-decade term on conspiracy charges related to a plan to acquire election financing for his presidential bid.

He maintains his innocence challenging the decision, and another court case planned for early next year.