Written by Gabriel Stargartter and Juliet Gabakho
PARIS (Reuters) -The depths of the prison sentence, President Nicolas Sarkozy, departments in France for dealing with judges with political violations, months before Marin Bear’s leader at the extreme right to condemn embezzlement and run for the highest position.
The Paris Court defeated the political field on Thursday when Sarkozy handed over a five -year prison sentence for a criminal plot for attempts to collect campaign funds from Libya. He will soon become the first president after the war to be imprisoned.
Ludovic Faraga, head of USM, the largest union representing the French prosecutors and the French judges, said that the ruling showed that there is no one above the law – even if some may choose to question the motives of the court.
“It is clear that there will be before and after this decision,” he said. “In prominent financial political trials, some inevitably see judges who descend to the political theater. What is regretted is that … often, this becomes smoke that turns attention from the crimes that have already committed.”
When Sarkozy left the court, he repeated his innocence, and said that the ruling would undermine the faith in the judiciary in France.
He said, “What happened today … from extreme gravity regarding the rule of law, and for the confidence that one can obtain in the judicial system,” he said.
Judges decrease political violations
The prison sentence in Sarkozy is immediately implemented, while giving the former president a short time to arrange his affairs, but he is not allowed to avoid imprisonment pending an appeal as some French politicians have done in the past.
Appeals can take years, providing a feeling of impunity for those in power, so the judges distribute the provisions of “temporary execution” immediately, as the lawyers and politicians told Reuters.
“Several decades ago, there has been a growing democratic demand for integrity between the elected officials,” Judith Allenbach, head of another judicial union, told Reuters.
She said that 89 % of the prison terms over two years were applied before any appeal and that the judges were undermining laws approved by Parliament imposing more striking penalties on this type of crime.
What does Le Pen mean?
Le Pen, the developed right -wing leader of the National Rally Party (RN), also obtained a “temporary execution” in March, when he was convicted of embezzling the European Union’s money. She got a five -year political ban that prevents her from running in the 2027 elections.
Le Pen, who will determine the January appeal whether it could run in 2027, said that Sarkozy’s condemnation showed that “the generalization of temporary executions by some judicial states is a major danger.”
Judicial sources said that Le Pen and Sarkozy cases are distinct, and it is impossible to determine how one can affect the other.
Farah said that Sarkozy’s rule showed that the judges did not hesitate in their battle against political crime.
“I can understand its anxiety,” he said, with a focus that he does not know what the Court of Appeal decides.
Le Pen’s allies say that right -wing politicians are receiving more severe treatment than judges, and highlighting the case of former Prime Minister Francois Bayro, who was acquitted of fraud last year due to the misuse of the alleged European Union’s funds.
The Luban district also drew the attention of US President Donald Trump, who said she was a victim of “Lawfare” and sent a diplomatic delegation to provide support.
Brigitte Pargis, a former right -wing mayor, was convicted of embezzlement in 2021, and a five -year political ban was granted with “temporary execution”. It was acquitted at the appeal.
She said: “What we see today is that the judicial system – or at least part of it – has become a weapon of power.” “Once, I believed in justice; today, I am afraid.”
The Ministry of Justice did not immediately respond to the request to comment on the notes of Parigs.
After the conviction of Sarkozy, conservative Senate Gerard Larcher said, “There is an increasing discussion within society regarding the temporary implementation of condemnation while the appeals have not yet been exhausted, and I participate this anxiety.”
However, the left -wing legislators praised the Sarkozy rule.
“Provided that we are honest and respect for the law is not reserved for the public. It also applies to those in power,” said Manuel Bombard of the unlike France Party.
“If the discussion law is performed, it is up to parliament for its treatment,” Prime Minister Sebastian Lecorno in Le Parisien said on Friday.
(Writing by Gabriel Stargardterditional reports by Elizabeth Al -Anef by Richard Loew and Vilipa Fletcher)
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