C
ursing one's judges after being convicted is a human temptation. Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy was no exception, denouncing the "hatred" he claims the magistrates of the Paris judicial court felt toward him, after they sentenced him on Thursday, September 25, to five years in prison in the case over the financing of his 2007 presidential campaign. Beaumarchais had his Count Almaviva say in The Barber of Seville that such rage should last "no more than 24 hours." By railing on Sunday, September 28, against "practices so contrary to the rule of law" and declaring that France had been humiliated by the ruling, Sarkozy went well beyond that limit.
Subscribers only
Sarkozy verdict reveals complicated relationship between the French, politicians and judges
Cursing one's judges is one thing; cursing the justice system and throwing it to the wolves of public opinion is quite another. Attempting to drag the country into a crusade against an institution whose respect is fundamental to civil peace is an irresponsible course of action. The death threats made against the presiding judge who handed down the verdict are not only "unacceptable," as President Emmanuel Macron belatedly responded, but also deeply troubling.
