How does Carlos Ghosn live his life in Beirut?

Since he fled Japan a year ago, where he is on trial on various charges, including tax evasion, car mogul Carlos Ghosn has been living a different lifestyle in Beirut than he was in charge, with a travel ban and his absence from the spotlight.

The Lebanese businessman, the Brazilian, the French and the former head of the Renault Nissan Mitsubishi alliance, benefited from the fact that Lebanon did not hand over its citizens to another country to be tried, to stay since their mysterious and controversial escape from Tokyo, far from the Japanese judiciary, which had put him under heavy house arrest.

After roaming the planet, Ghosn, 66, lives a quiet life in Beirut. He lives in an elegant villa that was bought and restored by Nissan when he was its president, located on an elegant street in the Ashrafieh area of ​​Beirut.

Ghosn spends his time with his wife Carole, who did not overlook any of his media appearances to talk about her and the depth of their relationships. He surrounds himself with a narrow circle of close friends. Sometimes he spends short vacations in boarding houses spread over various mountainous areas of Lebanon.

In an interview with the French-speaking newspaper “L’Orient-Le Jour” in Beirut in early November, Ghosn said: “I do not long for anything from my previous life, and today I feel that I am rooted in Lebanon, and this has no price”.

Ghosn arrived in Beirut at the end of last year after fleeing Japan, where he was arrested in November 2018 and spent 130 days in prison in two stages.

The Japanese judiciary indicted him on four counts, including failing to report his full income, using Nissan money he had saved from bankruptcy to make payments to personal acquaintances, and embezzling company funds for personal use.

The total unauthorized sum is more than 9 billion yen (equivalent to $ 85 million), according to Tokyo.

However, Ghosn denied all the allegations during a lengthy press conference he held in Beirut a week after his arrival, spoke boldly and utterly confident in his innocence and explained the circumstances of his trial, accusing the Japanese judiciary of being ” partial”.

Japan subsequently demanded that Lebanon hand over Ghosn to complete his trial, but Beirut authorities asked Tokyo to provide him with his court file, which has yet to happen.

In a report released on November 20, the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention deemed “depriving” Ghosn of “liberty” in Japan “arbitrary.”

He considered that the conditions for placing him under house arrest “apparently were exceptionally strict.”

The group, made up of independent experts who do not speak on behalf of the United Nations and whose opinions are not binding, considered that “the appropriate solution would be to grant Mr. Ghosn a legally enforceable right to compensation and other remedies, in accordance with the law international”.

Since his arrest in late 2018 in Japan, Ghosn has spoken of a “conspiracy” against him by some of Nissan executives who feel intimidated by the proposed merger with the Renault company, in “collusion” with the Tokyo prosecutor’s office.

Nissan and Mitsubishi are seeking compensation of 15 million euros for what they consider arbitrary termination of their contract. He also started a legal battle against Renault to obtain important retirement and equity rights.

Despite the allegations, many in Lebanon in political, academic and business circles still regard Ghosn as a “role model” due to his long career in the auto industry, and a role model for Lebanese “creativity” abroad.

Ghosn is often asked about his desire to get involved in political work in a country that is witnessing successive crises, an unprecedented economic collapse and a sharp political divide, yet he evades launching political positions and always shows his willingness to put his practical experience at the service of his country without assuming any political position.

He said in a previous statement: “I am not a politician and I am not looking for that.”

On September 29, Ghosn appeared from the podium of a private Lebanese university for the first time in months, to jointly launch customized training programs to support entrepreneurs and startups and develop students’ skills, while Lebanon is witnessing its worst economic crisis.

In November, Ghosn published a book entitled “A Time of Truth” that he wrote with French journalist close to Philip Rias, to present his long version of his story, without any self-criticism or revealing new information.

He is also participating in a documentary in preparation about his career, which is supposed to be turned into a short series about his life, and will begin filming next year.

Ghosn consistently refuses to reveal the details of his extraordinary escape, which has caused widespread shock in Japan and around the world.

The United States agreed in late October to hand over to Japan two Americans suspected of helping Ghosn flee Tokyo, via Turkey, and from there to Lebanon.

In addition to the questionable expenses incurred by Renault and Renault-Nissan’s Dutch subsidiary, investigators are also interested in hearing from Ghosn about the tax settlement case in the Netherlands while he was at the helm of the coalition.