Villepin 'victim of abuse of power'
Ex-prime minister accuses Sarkozy of using Clearstream trial as political weapon against former rival
FORMER prime minister Dominique de Villepin has accused Nicolas Sarkozy of “an abuse of power” as what some are calling the political trial of the decade kicks off in Paris.
Villepin said he believed it was wrong that the man who oversees the French justice system should be allowed to take legal action against one of the country’s citizens.
The 55-year-old is accused of conspiring to defame Sarkozy by helping to leak what turned out to be a fake list of people alleged to have benefited from illegal commissions from the sale of warships, on which Sarkozy’s name featured.
Sarkozy registered as a civil claimant in the case in 2006 to secure his right to seek damages, but Villepin accused him of using the trial as a political weapon against a rival.
Turning up at court yesterday for the first day of what is likely to be a one-month trial, Villepin told reporters: “I am here because of one man's will. I am here because of the determination of one man, Nicolas Sarkozy, who is also the president of the French republic.
“I will emerge a free man and exonerated. I know that truth will triumph. My battle is not a personal battle. It is a battle of all those who are victims of the abuse of power.”
Villepin’s lawyers wanted the court to strip Sarkozy of his status as a civil claimant to ensure he gets a fair trial.
They argued that Sarkozy cannot be the head of the state – and therefore the head of the judicial system – and also take action in one of its courts.
However the judge said in court yesterday that Sarkozy’s civil action could go ahead and would be heard towards the end of the trial in mid-October.
Article 67 of the French constitution gives presidents immunity from legal action during their mandate, but does not prevent them taking action against someone else.
Villepin denies any wrongdoing. He faces up to five years in prison and a €45,000 fine if found guilty.
He is one of five defendants in the case, which centres on a list of account-holders at the Clearstream financial clearing house in Luxembourg who allegedly took bribes from the sale of French warships to Taiwan. The list was later found to be fake.
One name on the bogus list was that of Sarkozy, then France's finance minister who suspected rival Villepin of planning to use the fake document to wreck his presidential bid. Interior minister Brice Hortefeux and International Monetary Fund head Dominique Stauss-Kahn also featured.
This is not the first time that Sarkozy has taken legal action while president. In 2008, he and Carla Bruni successfully sued low-cost airline Ryanair for using their picture without consent in an advert. He won a token €1 damages payout, while Bruni was awarded €60,000.
