Prison Surprise: The FormerPresident Bolsonaro Faces Life Behind Bars
He fought justice and the legal system triumphed.
Two months after getting a 27-year sentence for trying to “eradicate” Brazil’s political system, ex-president Jair Bolsonaro at last looks jail-bound.
Expected Incarceration
The found-guilty instigator – who has been subject to house arrest in his mansion while a set of legal procedures and challenges play out – is broadly anticipated to be incarcerated in the next few days, amidst mounting rumors that he will be moved to a well-known high-security penitentiary.
Past Remarks on Inmates
During Bolsonaro’s 40-year time in politics, the right-wing former paratrooper exhibited little sympathy for the country's inmates.
“Why should we give those lowlifes a good life?” he once mused. “They should just get fucked, full-fucking-stop. That's my opinion.”
In another instance, Bolsonaro declared: “If you don’t want to end up in prison, all you have to do is to avoid sexual assault, abduction or rob.”
Jail Destination Discussion
However the idea of Bolsonaro himself landing in the Papuda maximum security prison in Brasília has shocked supporters, a group of four this week visited the prison in an apparent effort to prevent the high court from banishing him there.
The senator, a politician from Bolsonaro’s political party who was one of the visitors, stated he expected the septuagenarian figure to be jailed in the following week and a half and feared his destination could be Papuda.
He asserted Bolsonaro’s serious gut issues – the result of a life-threatening knife attack during the 2018 presidential presidential campaign – meant it would be dangerous to keep the former president there. “His [health] situation is very grave. He will not be able to handle it if they take him to Papuda … It would be dreadful,” he added, who also expressed concern about cramped cells and the condition of jail cuisine.
While visiting Papuda, Lucas noted observing cells containing four dozen detainees: “That’s almost one square metre per prisoner.
“We spoke to the convicts and they protest, of course, of the awful food,” remarked the senator.
Allies React
He is not the lone figure speaking out ahead of the ex-leader's anticipated detention.
Penning in a prominent newspaper, one more backer, the former cabinet member Fábio Wajngarten, deplored the “brutal” end to Bolsonaro’s “flawless” time in office and claimed Brazil was about to experience “the greatest political injustice in its past”.
“It is an wrong that gnaws the hearts of many people in Brazil,” the former minister said.
Divided Public Response
That may be true given the significant support Bolsonaro maintains on the Brazilian right. But his anticipated imprisonment has also pleased the hearts of numerous others who feel he deserves to be jailed for planning to block the incoming president from becoming president – and additionally conspiring to have him assassinated.
The lawmaker, a representative for the current administration's allied group, said: “Nobody wishes Bolsonaro to be put in a dark cell. No one desires Bolsonaro to be put in segregation. Nobody wants Bolsonaro not to be fed or for him to have to rest on hard ground. We want him to get proper care – but respectful handling in prison. He cannot continue being his self-appointed guard for his lifetime.”
He observed how Bolsonaro backers, who have for a long time celebrating the tough handling of convicts, had suddenly become aware to their entitlements. “Just now has the conservative fringe – which has always asserted that basic rights should not be for criminals – chosen to inspect a penitentiary to learn what conditions are truly like,” he stated.
“Bolsonaro is a lawbreaker,” Otoni insisted, but that did not mean he earned “humiliating, demeaning handling”.
Possible Incarceration Facilities
In spite of talk that Bolsonaro could be moved to Papuda, which presently holds about 14,000 prisoners, his probable assigned facility appears to be a close jail for police officers and other “particular” detainees referred to as Papudinha (Little Papuda).
His potential cell are far more pleasant than those in the larger jail, although nonetheless a distant from the comfort Bolsonaro experienced while living in the spectacular leader's home, approximately 20 kilometers away.
According to sources, the accommodation Bolsonaro could likely reside in in Papudinha measures about 260 square feet – roughly the dimensions of vehicle spaces – and features a 12 square meter restroom with a water facility and a 12 square meter balcony. “He could be authorized to have a set and also a minibar in his room as long as they were donated by his loved ones,” the report indicated.
Partisan Reactions
Senator Lucas condemned the speculated idea to send the one-time head of state to Papuda as “a form of revenge” on the part of the judicial authority who presided over Bolsonaro’s legal case and will rule on his fate in the {