Posts

Showing posts from February, 2010

clear as mud

Image
. . . France's judicial system Clear as mud The Clearstream case raises anew questions of judicial independence Feb 4th 2010 | PARIS | From  The Economist  print edition AFP De Villepin hits back HOW independent is the French judicial system? That question has been thrown into sharp relief by the public prosecutor’s decision to appeal against the acquittal on January 28th of Dominique de Villepin, a former prime minister, in the “Clearstream” smear-campaign trial. One of the civil plaintiffs in the case was Nicolas Sarkozy, who has long claimed that Mr de Villepin was out to thwart his political career. Mr de Villepin evidently failed. Mr Sarkozy claimed soon after the acquittal that he accepted the verdict—and yet the public prosecutor promptly decided to appeal. Ever since, rumours have swirled of plots and counter-plots. Mr de Villepin was quick to cry foul. The decision to appeal, he claimed, had been taken “during a meeting at the Elysée”, Mr Sarkozy’s official