Chirac must appear in court

The former French president Jacques Chirac must go on trial for an affair over illegal party financing in the 1990s. Although the prosecution had demanded that the case be dismissed, the judge in charge of the case, Xavière Simeoni, has now opened the criminal proceedings. Anything else would have been scandalous, writes the daily Le Monde: "This spectacular decision has embarrassed a good number of politicians. On the right, of course, where people are saying that at almost 77 years of age and after having retired from political life, Mr Chirac 'doesn't deserve such treatment', and that, twenty years after the fact, he has a right to 'forget'. ... Despite the petition in September by the Paris prosecution demanding that the case be dismissed, Simeoni was of the opinion that it must go to trial. ... In view of her conviction it would have been scandalous to show Mr Chirac leniency."

» full article (external link, French)
More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » France

» To the complete press review of Monday, November 2, 2009