A smear trial began on Monday in Palais de Justice in Paris where ex-premier of France Dominique de Villepin will stand before the court, accused of organizing a defamation campaign against current French President Nicolas Sarkozy.
Charges against de Villepin include “complicity in false accusation, complicity in using forgeries, receipt of stolen property and breach of trust.” It is suspected de Villepin aimed at harming Sarkozy’s chances to win presidential elections in 2007.
The trial is expected to continue for about four weeks. If the former Premier is declared guilty, he may face up to five years in prison and a fine of $70,300 (€48,000).
Former French diplomat and protégé of ex-President Chirac, de Villepin has denied all charges.
“I will come out of this a free man and exonerated,” de Villepin said before entering the courtroom, quoted by BBC.
“I know that truth will prevail.”
Among the exposed was Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the head of the IMF, British media Timesonline.co.uk reported.
In 2006 one of the allegedly corrupt officials from the list, Jean-Louis Gergorin, who is also a former vice-president of the EADS aerospace company, admitted that he handed the list to judicial authorities, on orders by de Villepin and Chirac. According to Timesonline.co.uk, Gergorin also testified that he had meetings with de Villepin in 2004, which the latter denied.
A suspected accomplice of de Villepin, Imad Lahoud, a computer expert, testified that he “knew that Jean-Louis Gergorin was in contact with Dominique de Villepin and that the conspiracy against Nicolas Sarkozy was planned with Dominique de Villepin’s knowledge.”
Later the list was ruled a forgery by a judge and the court started to investigate de Villepin’s role in the affair instead. Judges wanted to find out who stands behind the list and if the goal was to discredit Sarkozy. Thus, de Villepin has been under investigation since 2007.
De Villepin claimed that he was just doing his job by investigating those on the list.
President Sarkozy is the first president to file judicial claims while in office and immune from legal procedures. Thus, de Villepin’s lawyers will ask the court to remove Sarkozy as plaintiff due to conflict of interests. And de Villepin might use the opportunity to play the role of a scapegoat in Presidential vendetta, claiming that Sarkozy was driven by jealousy and vengeance.
Charges against de Villepin include “complicity in false accusation, complicity in using forgeries, receipt of stolen property and breach of trust.” It is suspected de Villepin aimed at harming Sarkozy’s chances to win presidential elections in 2007.
The trial is expected to continue for about four weeks. If the former Premier is declared guilty, he may face up to five years in prison and a fine of $70,300 (€48,000).
Former French diplomat and protégé of ex-President Chirac, de Villepin has denied all charges.
“I will come out of this a free man and exonerated,” de Villepin said before entering the courtroom, quoted by BBC.
“I know that truth will prevail.”
Sarkozy on Forged Bribe List
The whole story began in 2004, when Dominique de Villepin served as Foreign minister, while Nicolas Sarkozy occupied the post of Interior minister, under the governance of then-President Jacques Chirac.
At that time Sarkozy’s name appeared in the list of 100 VIPs’ bank accounts in the Luxembourg bank Clearstream, which allegedly accepted bribes in the process of selling French frigates to Taiwan.Among the exposed was Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the head of the IMF, British media Timesonline.co.uk reported.
In 2006 one of the allegedly corrupt officials from the list, Jean-Louis Gergorin, who is also a former vice-president of the EADS aerospace company, admitted that he handed the list to judicial authorities, on orders by de Villepin and Chirac. According to Timesonline.co.uk, Gergorin also testified that he had meetings with de Villepin in 2004, which the latter denied.
A suspected accomplice of de Villepin, Imad Lahoud, a computer expert, testified that he “knew that Jean-Louis Gergorin was in contact with Dominique de Villepin and that the conspiracy against Nicolas Sarkozy was planned with Dominique de Villepin’s knowledge.”
Later the list was ruled a forgery by a judge and the court started to investigate de Villepin’s role in the affair instead. Judges wanted to find out who stands behind the list and if the goal was to discredit Sarkozy. Thus, de Villepin has been under investigation since 2007.
Real Guilt or President’s Revenge?
According to BBC report, there has been a political rivalry between de Villepin and Sarkozy for a long time.
Some say the trial, initiated by Sarkozy, is simply an act of revenge. According to a report by Timesonline.co.uk, when Sarkozy heard that his name was on the 2005 bank accounts list, he said he would “hang whoever did this on a butcher’s hook.” And the current trial is exactly what he vowed to do.De Villepin claimed that he was just doing his job by investigating those on the list.
President Sarkozy is the first president to file judicial claims while in office and immune from legal procedures. Thus, de Villepin’s lawyers will ask the court to remove Sarkozy as plaintiff due to conflict of interests. And de Villepin might use the opportunity to play the role of a scapegoat in Presidential vendetta, claiming that Sarkozy was driven by jealousy and vengeance.
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