Prison Surprise: The Ex-President Bolsonaro Confronts Time Behind Bars

He fought the legal system and the law prevailed.

Two months after getting a quarter-century plus sentence for attempting to “annihilate” Brazil’s political system, former president Jair Bolsonaro at last looks headed to prison.

Expected Jailing

The convicted instigator – who had been under home confinement in his estate while a series of judicial steps and challenges unfold – is widely expected to be jailed in the near future, amidst mounting speculation that he will be transferred to a well-known top-security prison.

Previous Statements on Convicts

Over Bolsonaro’s 40-year public life, the right-wing ex- soldier showed scant sympathy for Brazil’s inmates.

“For what reason must we give these dirtbags a good life?” he once pondered. “They should just get fucked, full-fucking-stop. That's my opinion.”

In another instance, Bolsonaro proclaimed: “If you don’t want to wind up in prison, all you have to do is not rape, kidnap or theft.”

Jail Location Debate

But the idea of Bolsonaro himself winding up in the Papuda prison top-security prison in Brasília has horrified supporters, a group of four this week visited the facility in an seeming bid to dissuade the high court from sending him there.

The senator, a lawmaker from Bolsonaro’s Liberal party who was one of the visitors, said he anticipated the septuagenarian politician to be incarcerated in the coming fortnight and feared his assigned prison could be Papuda.

He asserted Bolsonaro’s severe digestive problems – the consequence of a almost deadly assault during the 2018 presidential presidential campaign – implied it would be dangerous to keep the one-time head of state there. “His health is very grave. He won’t be able to cope if they take him to Papuda … It could be awful,” he added, who also expressed concern about overcrowded cells and the condition of inmate food.

When inspecting Papuda, Lucas recalled seeing cells holding forty prisoners: “That’s virtually one square meter per inmate.

“We conversed to the convicts and they complain, naturally, of the terrible food,” continued the senator.

Backers React

He is not the lone figure speaking out ahead of the one-time head of state's anticipated incarceration.

Writing in a major daily, another ally, the former communications minister Fábio Wajngarten, deplored the “severe” finale to Bolsonaro’s “flawless” public service and alleged Brazil was about to see “the greatest political injustice in its record”.

“This is an injustice that gnaws the hearts of millions of Brazilians,” he stated.

Mixed Popular Opinion

This could be correct due to the significant backing Bolsonaro holds on the Brazilian right. But his anticipated imprisonment has also gladdened the hearts of millions other people who think he should be jailed for conspiring to prevent the incoming president from taking power – and additionally conspiring to have him assassinated.

The lawmaker, a politician for the incumbent administration's allied group, said: “No one wants Bolsonaro to be put in a dungeon. Not a soul desires Bolsonaro to be put in isolation. Nobody desires Bolsonaro to go hungry or for him to have to sleep on the floor. We want him to obtain proper handling – but respectful treatment while incarcerated. He can’t continue being his self-appointed guard for his whole life.”

Otoni was struck by how Bolsonaro backers, who have long applauding the severe handling of inmates, had suddenly become aware to their entitlements. “Just now has the far-right – which has consistently asserted that human rights are not for lawbreakers – decided to tour a penitentiary to discover what circumstances are actually like,” he said.

“He is a criminal,” the congressman maintained, but that did not mean he deserved “degrading, insulting conduct”.

Possible Incarceration Facilities

Regardless of talk that Bolsonaro could be sent to Papuda, which now contains about 14,000 prisoners, his more likely assigned facility seems to be a close prison for law enforcement and other “unique” prisoners called Papudinha (Small Papuda).

His potential cell are considerably more pleasant than those in the primary facility, although still a world away from the comfort Bolsonaro experienced while living in the impressive presidential palace, approximately a short distance away.

As per information, the cell Bolsonaro could expect to occupy in Papudinha is about 24 square meters – about the dimensions of a couple of car spots – and includes a 130 square foot restroom with a bathing area and a 12 square meter terrace. “The ex-president might be authorized to have a television and even a minibar in his quarters as long as they were provided by his loved ones,” sources indicated.

Partisan Responses

He condemned the talked-about plan to send the former leader to Papuda as “a type of revenge” on the part of the judicial authority who led Bolsonaro’s coup trial and will determine his future in the {