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The ex-president of France is preparing a personal account in the coming weeks called A Prisoner’s Diary, chronicling his time served in custody.

The announcement came less than two weeks after the ex-leader left prison as he contests his conviction for unlawful coordination in a case to secure political financing provided by the regime of former Libyan leader.

Time in Custody: Personal Reflections

“Behind bars visibility is limited, with little to occupy time,” he writes in one passage, suggesting the book centers around his musings from seclusion as opposed to a broader observation of the packed and crisis-hit jail system in France.

“I forget silence, which doesn’t exist in La Santé, where noise is constant sound,” he continues. “The din persists relentlessly. Yet, similar to barren lands, inner life is fortified behind bars.”

Court Appearance: Recounting the Hardship

While appealing for release, the former leader had appeared remotely from a room in prison, depicting prison life as exhausting. He expressed in court: “I wish to commend those working in the jail, showing great humanity, and who helped make this ordeal tolerable – because it is a nightmare.”

“It never crossed my mind that in my seventies, I’d find myself behind bars. It’s a trial that has been imposed on me. I confess it’s hard, extremely tough. It leaves a mark all who experience it as it’s exhausting.”

Unprecedented Situation

The former president, who led the nation for a five-year term, set a precedent as ex-leader of an EU country and the initial post-WWII figure of France to experience jail.

Ahead of his incarceration he mentioned he would use his time to write a book.

Cell Library

It is not certain whether he had time to go through the texts he brought with him: a two-volume biography of Jesus together with Dumas’s work the famous story, where a wrongfully accused individual is imprisoned but escapes to take revenge.

Daily Reality

The former leader was placed in isolation to protect him in a room of about nine sq metres featuring a personal bathroom at the correctional facility in Paris. Security personnel were stationed in the next cell.

Reports indicated that he had eaten only yoghurts during his stay because he feared meals provided might have been spat on. Options were available to prepare his own meals yet he declined, according to reports. Unclear remains whether Sarkozy will write about his dietary choices.

Lawyer’s Statements

Sarkozy’s lawyer, who saw him regularly every day throughout the jail term, stated during proceedings he would be safer outside jail rather than in custody. “He received threats against his life, heard shouts during nighttime and emergency responses in an adjacent room when a prisoner self-harmed.”

Charges and Sentence

Sarkozy went to prison last month following a French court gave him a five-year sentence on conspiracy charges related to a plan to acquire political donations for his presidential bid.

He maintains his innocence and is contesting the ruling, and a fresh trial is scheduled for the coming spring.