Jailhouse Shock: The Ex-President Jair Bolsonaro Faces Time Behind Bars
He fought the law and the legal system triumphed.
A couple of months subsequent to getting a quarter-century plus sentence for attempting to “eradicate” Brazil’s democracy, one-time leader Jair Bolsonaro at last appears headed to prison.
Anticipated Jailing
The adjudicated plotter – who has been subject to residential detention in his mansion while a series of court processes and challenges unfold – is largely predicted to be incarcerated in the coming days, amid mounting rumors that he will be transferred to a infamous top-security facility.
Historical Statements on Prisoners
Throughout Bolsonaro’s four-decade time in politics, the conservative former military man showed little mercy for Brazil’s prison population.
“Why should we offer these lowlifes a good life?” he once mused. “They should just get screwed, period. That's my opinion.”
In another instance, Bolsonaro declared: “If you don’t want to wind up there, the only thing required is to avoid sexual assault, abduction or rob.”
Jail Facility Debate
But the idea of Bolsonaro himself winding up in the Papuda high-security prison in Brasília has horrified backers, four of whom this week toured the prison in an obvious bid to dissuade the supreme court from sending him there.
Izalci Lucas, a politician from Bolsonaro’s Liberal party who was part of that quartet, claimed he expected the 70-year-old leader to be jailed in the coming fortnight and worried his destination could be Papuda.
Lucas claimed Bolsonaro’s severe gut ailments – the outcome of a life-threatening knife attack during the last presidential campaign – signified it would be hazardous to keep the one-time head of state there. “His condition is extremely serious. He won’t be able to manage if they send him to Papuda … It could be terrible,” said the senator, who also expressed concern about cramped cells and the quality of jail cuisine.
While visiting Papuda, Lucas recalled observing cells accommodating forty inmates: “It's virtually one square meter per inmate.
“We conversed to the convicts and they complain, naturally, of the awful cuisine,” added the senator.
Backers Voice Concerns
He is not the sole person speaking out prior to the former president’s predicted imprisonment.
Authoring in a prominent daily, a different supporter, the former cabinet member Fábio Wajngarten, lamented the “brutal” finale to Bolsonaro’s “spotless” political career and asserted Brazil was about to see “the biggest political injustice in its history”.
“It represents an unfairness that gnaws the spirits of many people in Brazil,” he stated.
Divided Public Response
That may be accurate given the significant following Bolsonaro holds on the Brazilian right. But his anticipated imprisonment has also gladdened the feelings of numerous individuals who believe he should be incarcerated for plotting to stop the elected leader from becoming president – and also plotting to have him murdered.
The lawmaker, a politician for the sitting administration's political party, stated: “No one desires Bolsonaro to be put in a dark cell. No one wants Bolsonaro to be placed in solitary confinement. Nobody wishes Bolsonaro to go hungry or for him to have to sleep on the floor. We desire him to get proper treatment – but proper care in prison. He must not continue being his personal jailer for his entire life.”
Otoni was struck by how Bolsonaro backers, who have long celebrating the severe conditions of inmates, had unexpectedly woken up to their entitlements. “Just now has the far-right – which has consistently claimed that civil liberties are not for criminals – decided to tour a prison to find out what circumstances are truly like,” he remarked.
“The former president is a criminal,” he affirmed, but that did not mean he deserved “humiliating, demeaning treatment”.
Potential Prison Conditions
Despite talk that Bolsonaro could be transferred to Papuda, which currently contains about fourteen thousand prisoners, his expected location appears to be a close jail for police officers and other “unique” detainees called Papudinha (Little Papuda).
The accommodations are much more adequate than those in the main prison, although nevertheless a distant from the luxury Bolsonaro had while occupying the stunning leader's home, about 12 miles away.
According to information, the room Bolsonaro could likely reside in in Papudinha is about 24 square meters – roughly the size of a couple of car spots – and contains a 12 sq metre WC with a bathing area and a 130 square foot terrace. “The ex-president might be authorized to have a TV and additionally a small fridge in his cell as long as they were donated by his family,” the report suggested.
Ideological Reactions
Senator Lucas condemned the talked-about plan to send the one-time head of state to Papuda as “a form of payback” on the part of the presiding magistrate who led Bolsonaro’s legal case and will rule on his outcome in the {