Chirac in dispute with judiciary

Chirac was told by a judge to give evidence like an ordinary citizen

PARIS, France -- President Jacques Chirac is embroiled in a tit-for-tat dispute with the French judiciary over a refusal to testify.

Some magistrates have called for Chirac to stand down as head of a legal panel after he hit out at a judge who criticised him for not giving evidence at a trial.

Chirac had been summoned to testify at a Paris sleaze inquiry by judge Eric Halphen. But Chirac refused, saying Halphen was misusing his powers.

In turn, Halphen said Chirac, as head of state, was not above the law and should give evidence like an ordinary citizen.

Magistrates attending a rally on Thursday to demand more state funds for the courts system denounced Chirac for his attack on Halphen.

Halphen had ordered the president to appear on April 4 as a witness in an inquiry into municipal corruption while Chirac was Paris mayor.

Some called on Chirac to step down as chairman of the High Council of Magistrates, the panel that appoints judges.

Chirac had invoked presidential immunity in refusing to obey the summons.

He suffered a further legal blow on Thursday when Justice Minister Marylise Lebranchu confirmed she would take no action against Halphen despite Chirac's order to Prime Minister Lionel Jospin to sanction officials who leaked news of the summons to a Paris daily.

"The president has an unacceptable attitude and we demand that he step down from his function as head of the High Council of Magistrates," Evelyne Sire-Marin, head of the Magistrates' Union, said.

Etienne Apaire, head of the French Association of Investigating Magistrates, said Chirac should contest the summons in court if he was so sure it was illegal.

The protest marked a rare group outburst by judges, whose growing independence in France has been supported by the left-wing government but harshly criticised by conservatives angered at the growing number of sleaze probes.

The spat is the latest legal embroilment Chirac faces during the expected presidential election run-in against Prime Minister Lionel Jospin next year.

Chirac is involved in six sleaze inquiries linked to the funding of his RPR party and his 1977-1995 tenure as Paris mayor.

Elysee Palace aides defended Chirac by insisting the head of state was not an ordinary citizen, warning against making him answerable to routine judicial inquiries.

Chirac had been warned of the consequences if he failed to give evidence at the trial.

The summons, disclosed in the French daily newspaper Le Parisien, said: "If you do not appear or refuse to appear, you can be made to do so by public forces according to article 109 of the penal procedure code."

Refusing to heed the summons could theoretically also land Chirac with a 25,000 franc ($3,370) fine, it added.

Reuters contributed to this report.

Chirac rejects court summons
March 28, 2001
Chirac dogged by corruption claims
December 6, 2000
Jacques Be Nimble
December 11, 2000

Paris City Hall
Office of the French President
French Government

Note: Pages will open in a new browser window

External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.