After thirteen years of investigation, former French president Nicolas Sarkozy and twelve other suspects will face trial for allegedly using Libyan public funds for presidential campaign. As civil party, Sherpa welcomes this decision which opens the way to an historical trial.
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, through a complaint against members of the Gaddafi clan to investigate the origin of their assets held in France. The scandal of Libyan financing of Sarkozy’s 2007 presidential campaign was revealed by French media Mediapart in 2012, providing a detailed investigation on how he allegedly received millions in illegal campaign financing from the government of late Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi.
Sherpa filed a civil action in 2013, the beginning of a long investigation and of a fierce legal battle, marked by the confirmation of Sherpa’s legal standing to the civil action by the Supreme Court.
After nearly 10 years of investigations, troubled by Libya tragic civil war, 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.
Some of the others facing trial are heavyweights French officials: Claude Guéant, former minister and campaign finance director, Éric Woerth, and former minister of interior Brice Hortefeux.
In this first of its kind historical trial, Sherpa sheds light on the widespread practices of corruption committed by French officials relying on dictatures to secure their financial interests or contracts. This deadly system reinforces and gives credibility to authoritarian dictators and violent regimes to the detriment of the population.
For more information: presse@asso-sherpa.org
