Prison Surprise: The Ex-President Jair Bolsonaro Faces Life in Prison
He fought the law and the legal system won.
A couple of months after receiving a quarter-century plus sentence for attempting to “destroy” Brazil’s political system, one-time leader Jair Bolsonaro now looks headed to prison.
Expected Incarceration
The convicted instigator – who's been subject to house arrest in his estate while a set of court processes and challenges unfold – is largely predicted to be imprisoned in the coming days, amid increasing rumors that he will be moved to a notorious maximum security prison.
Past Remarks on Convicts
Over Bolsonaro’s long public life, the right-wing ex- soldier exhibited little mercy for the country's jailed individuals.
“What’s the need to provide those scoundrels a comfortable existence?” he once pondered. “They should just get screwed, full-fucking-stop. That’s what I reckon.”
In another instance, Bolsonaro stated: “If you don’t want to end up behind bars, you simply need is not sexual assault, abduction or theft.”
Prison Destination Discussion
But the possibility of Bolsonaro himself ending up in the Papuda maximum security prison in Brasília has shocked allies, four of whom this week inspected the complex in an apparent attempt to prevent the judiciary from banishing him there.
Senator Lucas, a lawmaker from Bolsonaro’s political party who was one of the visitors, stated he predicted the 70-year-old figure to be incarcerated in the following week and a half and worried his assigned prison could be Papuda.
He asserted Bolsonaro’s severe gut problems – the consequence of a life-threatening stabbing during the 2018 presidential election race – signified it would be dangerous to keep the ex-leader there. “His health is highly critical. He will not be able to cope if they send him to Papuda … It could be dreadful,” he commented, who also expressed concern about cramped cells and the condition of prison meals.
While visiting Papuda, Lucas remembered observing cells accommodating 40 prisoners: “That is almost one square meter per detainee.
“We talked to the prisoners and they complain, naturally, of the horrible meals,” added the senator.
Allies Speak Out
Lucas is not the sole person expressing views ahead of the former president’s expected detention.
Writing in a leading daily, another ally, the former government official Fábio Wajngarten, bemoaned the “brutal” finale to Bolsonaro’s “flawless” public service and alleged Brazil was about to witness “the biggest political injustice in its past”.
“It is an unfairness that eats away the spirits of many of Brazilians,” the former minister said.
Divided Public Response
That may be correct considering the considerable following Bolsonaro holds on the Brazilian right. But his expected imprisonment has also pleased the feelings of millions other people who believe he should be imprisoned for planning to block the elected leader from becoming president – and even scheming to have him assassinated.
The lawmaker, a representative for the sitting administration's Workers’ party, commented: “Nobody wishes Bolsonaro to be placed in a dungeon. Not a soul desires Bolsonaro to be put in segregation. Nobody wants Bolsonaro to go hungry or for him to have to lie on concrete. We want him to receive dignified treatment – but dignified handling while incarcerated. He cannot continue being his self-appointed guard for his lifetime.”
The congressman noted how Bolsonaro allies, who have spent years celebrating the tough handling of prisoners, had unexpectedly become aware to their rights. “Recently has the conservative fringe – which has consistently claimed that human rights are not for lawbreakers – decided to visit a penitentiary to learn what situations are actually like,” he said.
“The former president is a criminal,” Otoni insisted, but that did not mean he merited “humiliating, degrading conduct”.
Potential Prison Environment
Regardless of rumors that Bolsonaro could be moved to Papuda, which currently houses about fourteen thousand prisoners, his expected assigned facility looks to be a nearby penitentiary for police officers and other “special” prisoners referred to as Papudinha (Minor Papuda).
His potential cell are far more comfortable than those in the primary facility, although nonetheless a distant from the luxury Bolsonaro enjoyed while residing in the stunning official residence, about 20 kilometers away.
Based on sources, the cell Bolsonaro could expect to reside in in Papudinha has about 260 square feet – approximately the dimensions of two parking spaces – and includes a 130 square foot bathroom with a water facility and a 12 sq metre veranda. “The ex-president might be authorized to have a set and even a small fridge in his quarters as long as they were donated by his loved ones,” information indicated.
Partisan Responses
He condemned the speculated proposal to send the ex-president to Papuda as “a type of revenge” on the part of the supreme court judge who led Bolsonaro’s proceedings and will decide his outcome in the {