Word: chirac
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...Jean-Claude Marin has already advised that the charges be dropped as groundless. Under French law, he now has several weeks to petition an appeals court to overturn Simeoni's ruling - a move he looks certain to make since he previously told the judge he believed the evidence against Chirac was too weak to take to trial...
...there's also a sentiment that many members of France's political class may wind up discredited if too many old corruption cases are dredged up now. Earlier this week, several public figures - including former Interior Minister and Chirac confidant Charles Pasqua and Jean-Christophe Mitterrand, son of former President François Mitterrand - were convicted of illegally supplying arms to Angolan rebels in the 1990s. In responding to his guilty verdict and one-year prison sentence, Pasqua said that many former and current members of government knew about the arms sales, as well as several other illegal schemes...
...does Chirac's prosecution have much support among France's politicians - both on the right and left. Conservatives point out that the allegations are 15 years old and say a trial only risks sullying the image of a 76-year-old man still considered to be among the most popular public figures in France. According to a survey conducted earlier this month by the Ipsos polling company, Chirac enjoys a 76% approval rating. (Read: "Mon Dieu! Chirac More Popular Than Sarkozy...
...Many leftists who once vilified Chirac as sleazy and a political street brawler also see putting him on trial as unnecessary. "Jacques Chirac doubtless has a lot to answer for if justice authorities are pursuing him, but he's also given a lot for this country," former Socialist presidential candidate Segoléne Royal and long-time Chirac detractor said on Europe 1 radio Friday morning. "Today, he's a man who deserves to be left alone." Socialist Party spokesman Benoît Hamon also voiced concern about a trial. "There are laws to uphold, but it's true...
...that other illegal political funding schemes were commonplace in France from the 1970s to the early 1990s when a series of laws were passed to crack down on the practice. The French also tend to be more scornful of public officials who use corruption to enrich themselves personally, which Chirac isn't accused of doing in this case...