Jailhouse Surprise: The Ex-President Bolsonaro Faces Time in Prison
He contested justice and the legal system prevailed.
A couple of months after being handed a quarter-century plus sentence for seeking to “annihilate” Brazil’s political system, one-time leader Jair Bolsonaro finally appears jail-bound.
Expected Imprisonment
The convicted plotter – who had been living under home confinement in his mansion while a number of court processes and appeals unfold – is broadly anticipated to be jailed in the coming days, amidst mounting rumors that he will be transferred to a notorious top-security facility.
Previous Comments on Inmates
During Bolsonaro’s long time in politics, the far-right ex- soldier displayed little compassion for Brazil’s prison population.
“What’s the need to provide those lowlifes a comfortable existence?” he once mused. “They deserve to be screwed, end of story. That's my opinion.”
On another occasion, Bolsonaro declared: “Unless you desire to wind up behind bars, all you have to do is not sexual assault, kidnap or rob.”
Prison Location Speculation
Yet the prospect of Bolsonaro himself landing in the Papuda maximum security prison in Brasília has appalled allies, a group of four this week toured the prison in an apparent effort to prevent the judiciary from transferring him there.
The senator, a lawmaker from Bolsonaro’s Liberal party who was among that group, said he anticipated the septuagenarian figure to be incarcerated in the following week and a half and feared his assigned prison could be Papuda.
The senator argued Bolsonaro’s severe gut ailments – the result of a life-threatening stabbing during the 2018 presidential election race – meant it would be dangerous to keep the one-time head of state there. “His health is extremely serious. He will not be able to cope if they take him to Papuda … It could be awful,” said the senator, who also expressed concern about overcrowded cells and the condition of prison meals.
While visiting Papuda, Lucas noted witnessing cells containing forty detainees: “That’s virtually one meter squared per inmate.
“We talked to the inmates and they grumble, naturally, of the awful food,” added the senator.
Allies Voice Concerns
He is not the sole person voicing opinions ahead of the one-time head of state's predicted imprisonment.
Penning in a leading daily, a different supporter, the ex- government official Fábio Wajngarten, lamented the “severe” finale to Bolsonaro’s “impeccable” public service and alleged Brazil was about to see “the largest wrong in its record”.
“It represents an wrong that gnaws the spirits of countless of Brazilians,” the former minister said.
Mixed Popular Response
That may be accurate due to the substantial following Bolsonaro holds on the Brazilian right. Yet his expected incarceration has also pleased the hearts of numerous other people who think he ought to be jailed for plotting to stop the incoming president from becoming president – and also scheming to have him murdered.
The lawmaker, a congressman for the current leader's Workers’ party, stated: “Not a soul wants Bolsonaro to be placed in a dungeon. Not a soul desires Bolsonaro to be sent in isolation. Not a soul desires Bolsonaro not to be fed or for him to have to sleep on the floor. We desire him to receive respectful handling – but dignified handling in prison. He must not carry on being his personal jailer for his entire life.”
Otoni was struck by how Bolsonaro backers, who have spent years applauding the harsh treatment of convicts, had abruptly realized to their privileges. “Recently has the extreme right – which has repeatedly argued that human rights were not for lawbreakers – chosen to tour a jail to discover what situations are truly like,” he said.
“The former president is a lawbreaker,” Otoni insisted, but that did not mean he deserved “shameful, demeaning conduct”.
Likely Jail Environment
Regardless of rumors that Bolsonaro could be sent to Papuda, which now holds about thousands of detainees, his expected destination appears to be a adjacent prison for officers and other “unique” prisoners known as Papudinha (Little Papuda).
Its cells are far more adequate than those in the primary facility, although still a world away from the opulence Bolsonaro had while occupying the stunning leader's home, about a short distance away.
Based on sources, the cell Bolsonaro could anticipate reside in in Papudinha measures about 24 sq metres – about the dimensions of a couple of car spots – and includes a 12 sq metre bathroom with a water facility and a 130 square foot balcony. “He could be allowed to have a TV and also a cooler in his cell as long as they were provided by his relatives,” sources suggested.
Political Comments
The lawmaker denounced the rumoured plan to send the former leader to Papuda as “a type of payback” on the part of the supreme court judge who led Bolsonaro’s proceedings and will determine his future in the {