Jailhouse Shock: The Ex-President Jair Bolsonaro Faces Time Behind Bars
He battled justice and the law triumphed.
Two months after receiving a twenty-seven-year sentence for trying to “destroy” Brazil’s democratic institutions, one-time leader Jair Bolsonaro finally appears headed to prison.
Expected Imprisonment
The found-guilty plotter – who's been subject to house arrest in his mansion while a series of legal procedures and challenges play out – is widely expected to be jailed in the next few days, amid growing rumors that he will be sent to a infamous maximum security penitentiary.
Past Statements on Prisoners
Over Bolsonaro’s long time in politics, the conservative former military man showed little sympathy for the country's inmates.
“Why should we offer those scoundrels a comfortable existence?” he once mused. “They should just get fucked, period. That's my opinion.”
At another time, Bolsonaro proclaimed: “Should you not wish to finish behind bars, all you have to do is not rape, abduction or theft.”
Jail Destination Debate
But the possibility of Bolsonaro himself ending up in the Papuda maximum security prison in Brasília has appalled backers, several of whom this week toured the facility in an seeming effort to discourage the high court from banishing him there.
Izalci Lucas, a politician from Bolsonaro’s allied group who was among that group, stated he anticipated the septuagenarian figure to be jailed in the following week and a half and worried his destination could be Papuda.
He asserted Bolsonaro’s serious gut issues – the result of a life-threatening assault during the last election race – meant it would be hazardous to keep the former president there. “His condition is very grave. He won’t be able to cope if they send him to Papuda … It would be dreadful,” he commented, who also voiced anxiety about packed cells and the quality of inmate food.
During his tour Papuda, Lucas recalled seeing cells holding 40 detainees: “That’s almost one square meter per prisoner.
“We talked to the inmates and they protest, of course, of the horrible food,” remarked the senator.
Backers Voice Concerns
The senator isn't the only voice speaking out ahead of the ex-leader's expected incarceration.
Penning in a prominent daily, another ally, the former communications minister Fábio Wajngarten, deplored the “brutal” end to Bolsonaro’s “spotless” political career and alleged Brazil was about to witness “the biggest unfairness in its past”.
“This is an wrong that gnaws the souls of countless of Brazilians,” Wajngarten wrote.
Divided General Response
That may be accurate due to the significant following Bolsonaro maintains on the conservative side. But his predicted jailing has also pleased the hearts of many others who believe he ought to be jailed for planning to stop the incoming president from becoming president – and additionally conspiring to have him assassinated.
Congressman Otoni, a congressman for the current leader's political party, stated: “No one wants Bolsonaro to be put in a hole. No one wants Bolsonaro to be put in solitary confinement. Nobody wishes Bolsonaro not to be fed or for him to have to rest on hard ground. We want him to receive respectful handling – but respectful treatment behind bars. He must not persist being his own prison warden for his whole life.”
He observed how Bolsonaro allies, who have spent years praising the harsh treatment of prisoners, had unexpectedly woken up to their rights. “Just now has the conservative fringe – which has repeatedly asserted that human rights were not for lawbreakers – opted to inspect a prison to find out what conditions are actually like,” he said.
“He is a lawbreaker,” he affirmed, but that did not mean he merited “degrading, demeaning treatment”.
Likely Prison Conditions
In spite of talk that Bolsonaro could be transferred to Papuda, which presently contains about fourteen thousand inmates, his probable destination looks to be a nearby jail for law enforcement and other “special” prisoners known as Papudinha (Small Papuda).
His potential cell are considerably more comfortable than those in the main prison, although nevertheless a far cry from the comfort Bolsonaro experienced while residing in the impressive official residence, approximately a short distance away.
Based on reports, the accommodation Bolsonaro could likely occupy in Papudinha is about 24 sq metres – approximately the dimensions of a couple of car spots – and contains a 130 square foot WC with a bathing area and a 12 sq metre terrace. “He could be allowed to have a television and even a minibar in his cell as long as they were supplied by his relatives,” information suggested.
Political Comments
He criticized the speculated idea to send the one-time head of state to Papuda as “a form of payback” on the part of the judicial authority who led Bolsonaro’s coup trial and will determine his fate in the {