Jailhouse Surprise: Brazil's FormerPresident Jair Bolsonaro Faces Life Behind Bars
He battled justice and the legal system prevailed.
A couple of months following getting a 27-year sentence for seeking to “destroy” the nation's political system, ex-president Jair Bolsonaro at last appears headed to prison.
Imminent Jailing
The convicted plotter – who has been under home confinement in his estate while a set of judicial steps and petitions play out – is largely predicted to be jailed in the next few days, amid growing speculation that he will be transferred to a infamous high-security prison.
Previous Remarks on Convicts
Throughout Bolsonaro’s long political career, the conservative ex- soldier exhibited scant sympathy for Brazil’s jailed individuals.
“Why should we offer those dirtbags a easy time?” he previously wondered. “They should just get screwed, period. That’s what I reckon.”
On another occasion, Bolsonaro declared: “Should you not wish to end up there, all you have to do is to avoid rape, kidnap or rob.”
Incarceration Location Debate
However the idea of Bolsonaro himself ending up in the Papuda maximum security prison in Brasília has horrified supporters, several of whom this week visited the complex in an seeming attempt to discourage the supreme court from transferring him there.
Izalci Lucas, a senator from Bolsonaro’s Liberal party who was one of the visitors, stated he expected the elderly leader to be imprisoned in the coming fortnight and was concerned his destination could be Papuda.
Lucas claimed Bolsonaro’s serious digestive ailments – the outcome of a near-fatal stabbing during the 2018 presidential presidential campaign – signified it would be hazardous to keep the one-time head of state there. “His condition is very grave. He won’t be able to cope if they move him to Papuda … It could be dreadful,” he added, who also voiced anxiety about packed cells and the condition of prison meals.
During his tour Papuda, Lucas remembered seeing cells accommodating four dozen prisoners: “That is almost one square metre per prisoner.
“We spoke to the prisoners and they complain, of course, of the awful meals,” added the senator.
Supporters Speak Out
He is not the only voice voicing opinions prior to the former president’s predicted incarceration.
Penning in a leading daily, another ally, the ex- communications minister Fábio Wajngarten, bemoaned the “harsh” end to Bolsonaro’s “spotless” time in office and claimed Brazil was about to see “the biggest unfairness in its record”.
“This is an injustice that eats away the souls of millions Brazilian citizens,” the former minister said.
Mixed Popular Response
That may be true considering the substantial support Bolsonaro holds on the right-wing. But his expected imprisonment has also gladdened the spirits of millions other people who feel he ought to be imprisoned for plotting to block the elected leader from assuming office – and even plotting to have him murdered.
Congressman Otoni, a politician for the current administration's political party, stated: “Not a soul wants Bolsonaro to be placed in a dark cell. Nobody wants Bolsonaro to be placed in solitary confinement. Not a soul desires Bolsonaro to lack food or for him to have to lie on concrete. We want him to get proper treatment – but dignified handling behind bars. He cannot continue being his personal jailer for his entire life.”
Otoni was struck by how Bolsonaro supporters, who have for a long time applauding the severe handling of inmates, had unexpectedly realized to their entitlements. “Recently has the conservative fringe – which has repeatedly claimed that human rights should not be for criminals – opted to tour a penitentiary to discover what conditions are truly like,” he said.
“The former president is a lawbreaker,” the congressman maintained, but that did not mean he merited “degrading, degrading handling”.
Potential Incarceration Conditions
Despite speculation that Bolsonaro could be transferred to Papuda, which presently holds about fourteen thousand prisoners, his expected assigned facility looks to be a nearby penitentiary for police officers and other “unique” prisoners known as Papudinha (Minor Papuda).
Its cells are considerably more adequate than those in the primary facility, although still a far cry from the luxury Bolsonaro experienced while living in the stunning official residence, approximately 20 kilometers away.
Based on reports, the cell Bolsonaro could anticipate reside in in Papudinha is about 260 square feet – roughly the size of a couple of car spots – and features a 12 sq metre restroom with a shower and a 130 square foot balcony. “He could be permitted to have a set and also a cooler in his room as long as they were donated by his relatives,” sources stated.
Partisan Responses
The lawmaker condemned the rumoured plan to send the ex-president to Papuda as “an act of retaliation” on the part of the presiding magistrate who led Bolsonaro’s proceedings and will rule on his fate in the {