Old news on Chirac, but interesting since it may still possess some measure of "scandal" should someone wish to pursue it:
Judge probing Chirac case resigns
By Vaiju Naravane
Paris Jan. 15. The resignation of a senior French magistrate known for his moral integrity just three months ahead of France's Presidential election has added spice to an otherwise morose campaign.
Judge Eric Halphen, who was looking into financial irregularities relating to Mr. Chirac's term as Paris Mayor, threw in the sponge saying his investigation had been "sabotaged". Judge Halphen was removed from the Paris City Hall case last September but carried on with other probes. In his resignation letter to the Justice Ministry, Judge Halphen alleged that his investigation had been "sabotaged". The judge's surprise resignation comes on the heels of another scandal involving the President, Jacques Chirac, former Prime Minister and long-time Paris Mayor. This one concerns the paying of a hefty ransom in 1998 for the release of French hostages detained in Lebanon. The French President who was then Prime Minister has hotly denied that any ransom was paid.
The hostages were miraculously released between the first and second rounds of the Presidential elections. Mr. Chirac won the elections to become the current French President.
Revelation of a ransom payment were made by a former senior French official, Christian Prouteau who headed an arm of the French secret services under President Mitterrand. The first hint that money had been paid was contained in a leaked secret service memo which prompted the judiciary to open an investigation. It now appears that some of the cash was pocketed by two Lebanese businessmen who mediated in the affair.
Mr. Prouteau revealed in an interview that the sum paid out "was big, very, very, big". These revelations have increased the pressure on Mr. Chirac ahead of the April 21 election in which he is expected to be one of the principal candidates, alongside the Prime Minister, Lionel Jospin. In October, France's highest court ruled that the President could not be prosecuted or even questioned on a series of sleaze probes surrounding Paris city Hall during the late 80s and early 90s when he was Mayor of the capital. Should Mr. Chirac lose the election, he will become liable for investigation, questioning and possibly prosecution for a number of financial scandals.
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