France – Libya case, from the financing of Sarkozy’s campaign to transnational grand corruption

For justice beyond
borders

Why a legal action concerning the links between France and Libya?

Sherpa recalls that any person accused or prosecuted by a national or international jurisdiction is presumed innocent until found guilty by a final court decision. In this respect, an appealable decision does not constitute a final decision.

The 2000s marked the return to favor of Muammar Gaddafi, until then ostracized from international society due to his autocratic methods and alleged links with international terrorism. After several decades of absolute rule, the Libyan autocratic regime saw the rise of the first public protests in February 2011. From then on, repression turned into an armed insurrection. In August 2011, Tripoli fell into the hands of rebel movements and Muammar Gaddafi was captured and assassinated in October 2011.

In 2012, Médiapart published the first revelations concerning the political and financial affair known as the “Libyan financing of Nicolas Sarkozy’s campaign“. Back in 2011, Sherpa denounced the problematic nature of economic relations between France and Gaddafi’s Libya, first via the Amesys file, then alongside Transparency International, via a complaint against members of the Gaddafi clan to investigate the origin of their assets held in France.

In the aftermath of the revelations of Mediapart, Sherpa filed a civil action in 2013. Then began a long investigation and a fierce legal battle, marked in particular by the confirmation of Sherpa’s admissibility to the legal action.

A case that also highlights the role of private companies in foreign bribery cases. Among these companies, Airbus, which admitted the acts of corruption committed via its subsidiary in Libya in 2006 in order to facilitate the conclusion of a contract for the sale of twelve aircraft to the Libyan company Afriqyah Airways Again resorting to negotiated justice, those corruption facts were settled via a Judicial Convention of Public Interest (CJIP) concluded between the company and the National Financial Prosecutor’s Office.

A tentacular and complex file that shows the interpenetration of corrupt practices, politics, diplomacy and economic interests, at the expense of the too often forgotten victims of corruption.

Timeline

Key dates

  • 13 September 2011

    Complaint against Amesys filed

    Sherpa filed a complaint against the company of surveillance material Amesys.

  • 25 February 2011

    Complaint filed, ill-gotten gains Libya

    Sherpa and Transparency International France filed an Ill Gotten Gains case targeting the assets of the Khadhafi clan in France.

  • 26 June 2013

    Civil action

    Sherpa filed civil action in the judicial investigation on alleged illegal financing from Libyan officials of Sarkozy’s 2007 campaign.

  • 21 March 2018

    Sarkozy under judicial investigation

    Indictment of former president Nicolas Sarkozy for embezzlement of Libyan public funds, illegal campaign financing and corruption.

  • 24 September 2020

    Sherpa admissibility confirmed

    Sherpa’s action admissibility confirmed by the court of appeal.

  • 16 October 2020

    Sarkozy under judicial investigation

    Indictment of Nicolas Sarkozy for "criminal association".

  • 1 December 2021

    Sherpa admissibility confirmed by the Supreme court

    Sherpa’s action admissibility confirmed by the French Supreme court.

  • 30 November 2022

    Criminal transaction hearing of Airbus

    Validation hearing of the Judicial Convention of Public Interest (CJIP) concerning the acts of corruption committed by Airbus in Libya revealed during the investigation. Filing of a question of priority of constitutionality by Sherpa.

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  • 12 May 2023

    Financial Prosecutor Office ruled for the holding of a trial

    The financial prosecutor office finally ruled for the holding of a trial on, among others, alleged facts of corruption and use of embezzled Libyan public funds for former French president Nicolas Sarkozy and twelve other suspects.

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Impact

Why initiate legal action?

Sherpa

The law is a tool of power in a globalised world. It underpins power relations and encourages impunity for the most powerful. Because of their transnational nature, or the political and economic stakes involved, many violations escape justice. Bringing cases before the courts means putting the debate back on a legal footing, giving a voice to the people affected and thus restoring the legal tool to social movements.

Sherpa

Thanks to the work of NGOs and journalists, the consequences of globalisation are increasingly being documented and denounced. Our legal actions make it possible to initiate an contentious proceedings, establish the facts and apply the rules of law to these situations. They also aim to provide practical solutions by putting a stop to violations, holding the players concerned responsible and/or enabling victims to obtain compensation.

Sherpa

In support of our advocacy and in parallel with our legal laboratory and capacity-sharing activities, our legal actions are designed to contribute to wider and lasting change. They fuel public debate to highlight the limits of the legal framework and the obstacles facing the victims of globalised capitalism. They set precedents that shape a more protective legal framework.

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